


Take your time

by apathyinreverie



Category: Shadowhunters (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Human, Developing Relationship, Falling In Love, Fluff, Identity Reveal, Light Angst, M/M, Magnus has a kid, Mechanic Magnus (kind of but not really?), Modern Setting, Racer Alec, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-02
Updated: 2019-08-24
Packaged: 2020-07-29 05:06:50
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 26,286
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20076631
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/apathyinreverie/pseuds/apathyinreverie
Summary: Alec loves racing, his siblings, and - most of all - racing with his siblings. So, when the three of them are hired by one of the best racing teams on the circuit he can barely believe his luck. The fact that their new team's head mechanic is just about the hottest human being he has ever seen with the most adorable little boy for a son certainly doesn't hurt either.Sure, he has no idea who his team's mysterious billionaire owner is but why should that bother him? It's not like he is ever going to meet this Bane guy in person.





	1. Ready

Magnus frowns down at the papers in his hands.

Seated across from him, Luke is pretending nonchalance but Magnus knows the other man is just as pissed off as he is.

He feels his frown darken as he stares down at the pictures of his team's two drivers. Pictures of their apparent shenanigans, not only in various nightclubs and bars all around the city - which will wreak havoc with his team's image if the press gets a hold of this - but also _in_ Magnus' garage. Pictures of them using the multiple-million-dollar cars he is supposed to entrust them with on the race course not at all as they are intended.

Magnus loves his cars, loves taking them apart, redesigning them with the truly genius engineers he has gathered for his team, loves fiddling with every single tiny component of them. His cars are his babies. So, he definitely doesn't appreciate his drivers using those same cars to impress their one night stands much less making out with random top models on _top_ of them.

And then there are the drug tests.

His lips curl in anger, paper crinkling between his fingers, breathes out harshly.

The quiet snuffling against his shoulder immediately brings him out of his anger and his hand automatically comes up to soothingly run along his son's back. Rafael only fell asleep against his shoulder about an hour ago - having been struggling with a cold for two days now - entirely exhausted from crying through most of the night.

Which also means a sleepless night for Magnus.

It only takes a couple of moments for Rafael to settle again, little face tucked against his neck.

Only then does Magnus focus back on the papers in his hands, once more falling on the results of the unannounced, random drug test he had Luke order for both drivers as soon as he became aware of their propensity for partying and their less-than-stellar attitude towards upholding his team's name.

They are both rather new hires – even if they came highly recommended – for the upcoming season. And, thank god, Luke brought this to his attention _before_ the actual first race. Partying, drug-abusing drivers really isn't the sort of thing Magnus wants associated with his team.

At least the results of the drug tests prove them to be in clear violation of their contracts, so Magnus can fire them both without backlash or even having to pay a settlement. And it will also guarantee that both of the drivers will be keeping their mouths shut about everything, lest Magnus make their drug tests public and ruin any chances they might ever have to be hired as drivers again.

So, he looks up at Luke and asserts firmly, "Fire them."

The other man just nods, clearly having expected as much. "Both of them?" he still asks for confirmation. "Despite the season starting in less than two weeks?"

"Yes, both of them" Magnus confirms. "I'd much rather risk the championship title than have either of these buffoons put the team at risk of being disqualified later on. I will not have the entire team be held hostage by their idiocy," Magnus replies. Being stupid enough to use drugs is one thing, being moronic enough to get _caught_ another.

By god, he is irritated.

Luke nods, clearly agreeing, then gets up and reaches out to lay a hand on Magnus' free shoulder. "As long as we find decent enough drivers before the season start, we can always focus on the team win instead of the individual titles this year."

It almost makes Magnus smile. Luke has always been more concerned with wholesome team dynamics than the titles itself.

But what Luke just said is also true. If they can find drivers who both reliably finish in the top five, they'll have a good shot at the team win this season at least.

He sighs. "Ask around quietly," he says. "See if anyone knows a couple of drivers who are good enough to bring in reliable points and also have the damn work ethic to match. If that doesn’t work, we’ll go public."

Luke nods. "Will do, boss."

"Oh, and please make sure that whoever recommended these two morons as drivers stops by my office at some point today. I'd like to have a conversation about people-reading skills with them."

There is a slight smirk on Luke's face. "Certainly."

Magnus smiles back exhaustedly, watching as Luke strides out of his office.

He tiredly runs a hand over his face, definitely feeling the effects of his lack of sleep now.

He reaches up carefully to check Rafael’s forehead, relieved to feel that his temperature has definitely gone down significantly. Then, he carefully rearranges his son against his shoulder, before leaning back in his chair, closing his eyes to at least doze a little before his next meeting.

Today already promises to be an utterly exhausting day.

First, there is the meeting with his chief engineers in half an hour, immediately followed by the presentation by his PR team, before he'll have to get to the city to meet Ragnor to check out that potential site for their newest hotel in Manhattan.

It will their fourth hotel just in New York alone but Ragnor says that this newest site is possibly the best location yet. And the hotels have always been more Ragnor's thing than Magnus' ever since they decided to add them to their ever-growing list of businesses, so he'll take his friend's word for it.

The two of them have been ‘in business together’ ever since Magnus can remember, having come up with the idea of FB Enterprises back when they were still two desperately lonely kids in an orphanage, after having decided they might as well choose their own names and swearing to be friends forever.

And somehow along the way they actually managed to make it from rather literal rags to truly literal riches, hitting metaphorical gold when they were nineteen, and becoming _filthy rich_ in their early twenties.

He knows their story sounds ridiculous, is well-aware that most of their success was due to a healthy dose of luck but they also worked their way to where they are now. Literal blood, sweat and tears went into their business, as much as it might not seem like it these days.

Still, even the two of them hadn’t ever truly believed they’d make it to actual riches.

They'd finished school like everyone else, already working on the side to be able to support themselves, not naive enough to think that anyone would give two kids like them a scholarship to go to college.

But then, a few good investment decisions, selling two of their start-ups for a couple of million dollars in total, a few inventions and one or two patents to their names later, and suddenly they had quite literally been swimming in money. So, they'd given themselves scholarships to go to college, no external funding needed.

Going into the nightclub business had been more of a joke than anything else. Well, it had been a joke until it started making them a whole lot of money. Five successful clubs along the East Coast later, they thought, why not try their hand at hotels. A decision which turned out to be even more lucrative.

These days, even Magnus couldn't tell you how much he is actually, _factually_ worth.

FB Enterprises owns entire city blocks in most larger American cities, hotels all over the world, companies in pretty much every money-making sector. They pump endless amounts of money into charities, have their own organization of orphanages - or 'group homes', as they are called these days - all around the country, schools, research institutes, even a couple of hospitals.

They keep investing and investing and still have so much money left over that three years ago, Magnus had decided to finally follow Ragnor's example and grant himself the boon of fulfilling his childhood dream. The dream of owning his own racing team.

Well, Ragnor does sailboat regattas for some unfathomable reason instead of real racing, but still.

Point is, Magnus and Ragnor are filthy rich.

And while their success is a story in and of itself, Magnus thinks the most notable thing about them is that despite their wealth and their inevitable fame, very few people actually know _who_ is behind FB Enterprises.

To the public they are only known as the eccentric billionaires Bane and Fell who - despite their fame - avoid cameras like the plague. Trying to identify them is the tabloids' favorite pastime and at this point, it has turned into a where-is-Waldo sort of guessing game where every few weeks a new article comes out in one of the gossip rags, someone or other claiming to have finally identified the two mysterious billionaires. They have yet to get it right.

Well, Magnus is fairly certain that the larger news outlets actually have a pretty good idea as to their identities, but they have long since struck an unspoken agreement of exclusive interviews in exchange for their anonymity.

It might be an unusual arrangement, but this way the papers get their quotes, the gossip rags their clickbait, and Ragnor, Magnus and Rafael get to keep their privacy.

It works for everyone involved.

And he loves the fact that he can just go for a walk with his son in the park without having to surround himself with security. Not to even mention it also means that he can just spend time on his hobby without being mobbed by fans or sycophants rallying for his attention.

His hobby being his beautiful, beautiful cars he so loves working on.

As if on cue, there is a knock on his door, Maia sticking her head inside. He smiles, waves her and the other three engineers waiting with her inside, already looking forward to whatever improvements to the cars they want to discuss with him today.

* * *

Alec is just in the process of setting down the shopping bags on their kitchen island when the door – which he closed behind himself barely a minute ago – forcefully slams open again, heralding the arrival of his sister.

"Did you hear?!"

He just raises an eyebrow at Izzy where she is standing in the doorway - slightly out of breath probably from sprinting up the stairs to their apartment, practically vibrating in place with whatever news she seems to be holding in - not really in the mood to play any sort of guessing games with her. She has her other brother for that.

As if on cue, Jace sticks his head into the kitchen from the corridor to the right, clearly drawn by the noise. "Hear what?" his brother asks as he proceeds to wander over to the fridge to help Alec put the groceries away, tone a mixture of annoyance at the noise she is making and intrigue at her obvious excitement.

There is something bright and eager in Izzy's eyes and even Alec can't help but be a little curious what sort of gossip she must have snapped up at the garage she works at. It's been a while since he has seen her look _this_ excited over anything.

And for once, her need to tell them seems to even win out over her enjoyment of holding any sort of information over her brothers' heads.

"DW Motors just fired both their drivers!" Izzy exclaims, her eyes wide with excitement.

Alec feels both of his eyebrows jump up on his forehead in surprise.

DW Motors. One of the best teams on the circuit. One of the teams, the three of them would give a limb to be hired by.

Well, maybe not a limb , if only because Alec and Jace definitely need all four of their limbs to drive. But how about their souls? Would their souls suffice? Because they'd definitely be willing to sell those in exchange for the chance to work for one of the top notch racing teams on the circuit.

It's their thing. Racing.

All three of them love high-speed cars, might as well have gasoline running through their veins instead of blood. Well, only Alec and Jace actually drive, while Izzy is the mechanic between them, able to take any car apart and put it back together blindfolded. With numerous improvements.

Point is, they've always wanted a career in professional racing, it's what they’ve dreamed about ever since they were kids.

Thing is, contrary to what their twelve-year-old, oh-so-starry-eyed selves might have believed when they decided they were going to have their own racing team and win world cup after world cup as soon as they were old enough to drive, being able to drive _or_ build a car in no way guarantees you a spot amongst the elite.

Skill doesn't necessarily mean you'll get a chance to show off what you can do. You need luck for that. Or connections. Or both.

Sure, Izzy has a job at a racing garage, already having made a name for herself with her ability to actually understand the racers and their complaining about this or that, an ability born from long years listening to her brothers' ranting. And Alec just completed his season contract driving for one of the teams in the lower ranking racing circuits. And teams from the single-event races practically come begging Jace to join them every time the races come around each year.

Which is nice enough, great even, lets them do what they are good at, what they love, and more than pays their bills.

But it's not their dream. The dream of all three of them working on the same team, Alec and Jace racing together and Izzy working her magic on the cars they drive.

So, Izzy's news definitely has Alec straighten up in interest, facing her fully.

Because, one of the best teams on the circuit firing both their drivers with the season start so close? That's pretty much unheard of.

Jace clearly feels the same. "What? Why?" he exclaims. "The season starts in twelve days!"

"I know!" Izzy returns giddily. "That’s my point! They are going to be looking for drivers starting tomorrow!"

"They aren't yet?" Alec raises an eyebrow at her.

Izzy waves him off. "It's not been officially announced yet. I don't think the press has even gotten wind of the fact that the drivers have been fired at all."

Jace eyes her, "So, how do _you_ already know?"

Alec thinks he already has a pretty good idea where she got her information, recalling Izzy saying something about Meliorn - her on-again-off-again boyfriend - switching to work at DW Motors.

Izzy just quirks her lips in a grin. "I have my ways."

Jace rolls his eyes. "Oh 'ways', thy name is Meliorn," he interjects sardonically.

She shrugs with a smirk. "Well, one of us has to keep an eye on the circuit. And seeing as the two of you are incapable of maintaining an actual relationship for more than a couple of wee-" she abruptly cuts herself off, gaze flitting to Alec, eyes slightly wide in apology despite her comment so clearly having been directed at Jace and his serial dating ways.

Alec just keeps his face entirely impassive.

He has never been the sort to date a lot and the one time he truly tried, well, let's just say that particular relationship ended rather abruptly and most certainly taught him that his general dislike for people might have been the way to go all along. Or maybe relationships simply aren't for him.

Either way, the fallout from that attempt at dating was rather spectacular and left Alec convinced that he should maybe wait another decade before he tries dating again. Possibly two. Possibly forever. Yeah.

These days, he's just stopped looking. If it happens, it happens. And if it doesn't, Alec will be just fine on his own.

Thus, he just ignores his siblings' stares and instead asks calmly, "So, when are these yet-to-be-announced tryouts taking place?"

Izzy watches him for another second, but then thankfully just drops it. "They are getting word out rather quietly today and tomorrow, asking around while trying to avoid the media storm. If that doesn't work, they'll do a public announcement the day after. I told Meliorn to get us the first spot for tryouts they have, for both of you at the same time if he can swing it."

Her excitement has clearly fully returned now, eyes wide and glittering once more. Jace is grinning and Alec feels a similar expression spreading over his face.

Because this? A team - not to even mention one of the best teams out there - missing two drivers?

It's the chance they have been waiting for. And they are going to damn well take it.

* * *

Magnus watches the tryouts on the screens in his city office.

Sadly, Magnus wasn't able to make it back in time to actually watch the tryouts in person, a problem with one of his and Ragnor's nightclubs calling him away to the city. Still, he'll be damned if he doesn't weigh in on the decision which drivers to hire even if he has to do so via conference call with Luke and Gretel.

"They really seem to have great harmony in their driving," Gretel is saying over the speakers.

Young she may be, but Gretel has an amazing sense for anyone's strengths and weaknesses on the course. Well, the drivers tend to hate her - especially those from other teams because of her ability to pinpoint their weaknesses - but she is the first he listens to when it comes to assessing anyone's actual driving skill.

And Magnus also can't help but agree with her current assessment.

Because their skill is definitely obvious, a sort of synchronization to their driving that is honestly beautiful to watch. He feels his eyebrows rise as he watches one of them settle into the slipstream of the other, their cars moving in perfect synch, barely a couple of centimeters between the two cars, moving as though they were a single entity, as though they were physically attached, and not two independent objects moving at high speed.

He isn't sure he's ever seen something like this before at all.

"They're brothers, you said?" Magnus asks.

"Yeah. Or something like that," Luke confirms. "Their sister is the mechanic of the bunch."

"Oh?" Magnus asks absently, truly mesmerized by the skill he is currently witnessing on the course. "Any good?" He's always looking for more talent to add to his roster.

"Well, Meliorn says she is great," Luke responds humorously.

Magnus raises an eyebrow with a slight grin, "By your tone I take it that assessment might not be entirely unbiased?"

"Got it in one," is the amused reply. "I sicked Maia on her."

"Ah. We'll definitely get a brutally honest assessment of the sister's skills then," Magnus can't help but grin. Maia is one of his top engineers, a spitfire, and the day she minces her words is the day Magnus starts believing in magic.

"Too true," Luke laughs.

Magnus focuses back on the screens, tilts his head, considers.

It's always astounding to him how much untapped talent there is still to be found whenever one goes looking. These two are actually the first ones to try out at all and clearly not only know what they are doing, truly seem to have the skill, but the way they harmonize is really rather impressive to watch. Depending on the racing strategy, drivers who are able to pull each other in their slipstream are actually worth quite a lot.

Even Magnus is honestly a little surprised just how quickly Luke managed to find two drivers with skills like this, less than twenty-four hours ago after Magnus decided to fire his other drivers at all.

They haven't even made their search for new drivers official yet, have yet to even announce the firing of their previous drivers to the press.

Hm, if they hire these two right off the bat, the PR team could probably make this entire mess seem like an active decision to change personnel, maybe feed the press something about irreconcilable differences with his previous drivers, maybe even make it seem like a mutual decision.

Which would definitely be less harmful to his team's image than having to admit that his previous drivers had entirely forced his hand in this.

So, if Luke and Gretel think these two are good enough then Magnus would actually be willing to stop the search for drivers right now, before they make it official at all.

"How many people know we are looking for drivers at this point?" he asks.

"Barely a handful aside from the team itself," Luke replies promptly, probably already guessing where he is going with this.

Magnus nods. That's Luke-speak for, 'no one who'll get chatty with the press'.

Good.

Now, on to their personalities. While Gretel may be able to pick anyone apart for their driving skills, Magnus doesn't know anyone who is better at reading people than Luke is.

So, he asks, "What impression did you get of them earlier?"

Luke promptly replies, "They seem reliable, determined to prove what they can do. I haven't had time to really check out their background but just based on what I could find with a quick search, the three of them have been working towards this their entire lives. I think if given the chance there is no way they'll screw it up by being stupid. Especially the older brother. The younger one might be tempted by some of the things that come with fame and fortune, but the older brother seems pretty intense. He'll likely be the sort we'll have to drag off the course and force into getting some rest. And going by what I've seen of their dynamic, the eldest is the leader between the three of them and the other two will follow where he goes."

Magnus feels his lips quirk. Wholesome family dynamics are always a joy to observe.

He looks back at the screens where the two drivers are still circling the course, the time they need to round the test course dwindling with every lap.

"Well, their skill is obvious," he says leadingly, waiting for Gretel to jump in.

"Hm," she promptly hums in agreement. "They also don't seem to be used to driving quite at this sort of speed, at least not together. But they clearly recognized their own limit and only started inching their way up in speed once they got used to it, so it's hard to tell how fast they'll ultimately be with a little bit of practice. But just that slipstreaming alone will mess up everyone else's dynamics entirely. It should at the very least be fun to watch," she smirks at Magnus.

Magnus grins back, sobers, considers for another second. Then decides. "Give them a few more test rounds, then put them through whatever tests you think are needed. If they pass your hoops, hire them. I'll give Dot a heads-up to prepare a press statement."

"Okay, boss," Luke says. A second, then he adds with humor in his voice, "If we do hire them, I'll even send you a file on them, pictures included. You know, just so you'll be able to recognize your own employees should you run into them at any point."

Magnus quirks a sardonic grin, "Excellent idea." In the mess that has been today he had kind of forgotten about that. But it's not like they hire racers for their looks. "Let me know once you make a decision." Magnus does love to weigh in on any and all decisions around his team, but owner of the team or not, he isn't arrogant enough to think that he knows better than the people whose actual job it is to make these calls.

"Will do." Luke tilts his head, "Also, you look like you might fall asleep on your desk any second. How about getting some rest between meetings?"

"Oh, how I wish, Luke. Oh, how I wish," Magnus sighs wistfully.

Rafael might have recovered from his cold, even slept mostly through the night, but sadly Magnus isn't getting any younger and is now definitely still feeling the effect of several nights spent consoling his son.

He eyes the clock, knowing Zachariah will be here in less than fifteen minutes to talk about that lawsuit against one of FB's nightclubs.

Zachariah who has been his lawyer pretty much ever since he got out of law school, who is the most amicable, gentlest, friendliest person you’ll ever meet.

Until you get him into a courtroom, that is. Then he promptly turns into a shark, sharp teeth no longer quite hidden behind his amicable smile, able to sense any sort of weakness and happily honing in on it with deadly accuracy.

His old friend is the best deterrent against lawsuits anyone can have, what with quite a number of law firms nowadays refusing to face off against him anymore unless they think it's a sure thing.

Not that Zachariah ever runs out of things to do as his lawyer, seeing as Magnus always seems to be in some sort of legal battle against someone suing him for something. Magnus is rich, yes, could easily pay off any lawsuit ever brought up against him and his businesses, but he absolutely detests the sort of thinking where people try to get a slice of the cake via lawsuit instead of putting in the effort to make money off their own backs.

Which is the main reason why he so enjoys watching Zachariah work, the satisfaction of watching him tear Magnus’ opponents to shreds.

* * *

Alec wanders around the beauty of a car in front of him. The car that he will be racing officially for the first time when the season starts in two days.

And despite his official debut still being two days away, he is already a little giddy with excitement and nerves.

Because - _somehow_ \- Alec and Izzy and Jace were all hired by DW Motors on the same day.

He still isn't entirely sure just how they managed that.

Their tryouts were just about a week ago now, and Alec remembers mostly just being giddy at getting to drive those beautiful cars at all, much less together with Jace.

But they must have impressed the right people during the tryouts, because when they finally had to get out of the cars - admittedly, starting to feel the drag of the continued high focus required while driving at those kinds of speeds but the adrenaline of racing together still pumping through their blood - they’d only been given the time to recover for a bit, get something to drink and get over the adrenaline rush of high-speed driving.

And then they’d found themselves in a room with the team’s head of personnel and several lawyers. And a contract on the table in front of them.

Alec remembers blinking down at the papers in front of him, rather taken off guard by the sudden development, Jace wide-eyed and just as baffled, paging through his own copy of the document next to him. And Alec remembers almost absently reaching into his pocket for his phone. And then promptly shooting off a rather panicked text to Lydia, asking for her help.

He hadn’t even gotten a reply from her but barely thirty minutes later she had appeared in all her no-nonsense, lawyerish glory and unceremoniously muscled her way into the meeting to look over the contracts.

But despite the speed with which everything was being handled, there had been no traps, no hidden clauses, no unreasonable demands.

The only unusual stipulation in the contracts had been a clause about the first race acting as a sort of test run and that the contract would be immediately dissolved if they don’t prove themselves capable by completing the race within a certain margin of the total ranking.

Which - considering the short time span with which everything had to be handled - Alec thinks is pretty fair.

Because this is all they ever wanted. A chanceto prove themselves.

So, once Lydia had assured them that there wasn’t anything in the contract that might screw them over later on, they had signed, left the DW Motor garage and test track in something of a daze. Not at all helped when they finally met up with Izzy again.

Because unbeknownst to them, while they had been trying out, Izzy had apparently been whisked away for an interview of her own, passed with flying colors and had been hired as a chassis mechanic.

So _somehow_ \- within less than twenty-four hours after even hearing about the tryouts - they had suddenly had their dream in their hands. And as an added bonus they'll apparently be making a truly stupid amount of money while doing what they love, what they’ve always dreamed off.

It still doesn’t seem entirely real.

So, every morning since they signed on, the first thing Alec does after coming to the garage is to get another look at the absolute beauty of a car he gets to test drive every day, before he can even so much as think about getting started on doing anything else.

Just to get another look at his dream come true. Make sure he isn’t actually dreaming all of this.

Sure, with how quickly everything is going, the last week has been rather insane. Alec and Jace doing test drive after test drive, adjustments to the cars being made to match their preferences and driving styles as much as is possible within the regulations.

They both have an entire team of mechanics and engineers and designers working with them, with Izzy jumping in from time to time to serve as their technical translator when the problem they are trying to describe is entirely lost on the mechanics struggling to make sense of their complaints. And every night the three of them go home giddy and excited, because this sort of high-level racing is just so very different to what they are used to.

But the point is, it's early in the morning and Alec got here before most of the other employees and now he is once more staring at the car that represents his childhood dream come true. Just two more days until they finally have the chance to prove themselves, to prove that they deserve to be here, that this team was right to take a chance on them by hiring them off the bat.

Their dream is finally within reaching distance. And standing in front of the beauty of a car he currently has every right to be calling _his_, Alec thinks that he is damn well going to grasp it with both hands.

There is a noise.

Alec blinks.

There it is again. It almost sounds like a squeal.

Not the rather demented squealing of the fangirls who seem to be forever swarming the racetrack, who so very recently started crowding him and Jace ever since their hiring by DW Motors was announced a week ago.

No. It's the giggly squealing of a child.

He looks around, rather confused to hear that particular sound here, in a professional racing garage.

And barely a second later, a little shadow comes zooming around the corner - a toddler, maybe one or two years old - screeching in joy at whatever game is currently being played.

Well, Alec says 'zoom', but it's more of an enthusiastic – rather precarious-looking – waddle if he is entirely honest.

The little boy doesn't even seem to see him standing there as he continues on his path, clearly familiar with his surroundings as he makes a beeline for the stack of tires Alec is standing beside, little legs working to escape from whoever is approaching from around the corner.

"Rafa!" It's a man's voice, full of laughter. "Rafael, where are you?” An overly dramatic gasp. “Oh no, I seem to have lost my son. Where could he have gone?"

The toddler giggles and does his best to speed up in his attempt to get away, barely managing to make it behind the tire stack just as the owner of the voice rounds the corner.

And if Alec thought he felt mildly surprised by the appearance of a toddler before, he abruptly finds himself entirely speechless. Because the man who just stepped into the room, coming to a surprised halt as soon as he spots Alec, is quite simply put _gorgeous_.

And clearly just as surprised to see him here as Alec is.

They blink at each other.

Then, there is a muffled, but-not-at-all-quiet giggle from less than two feet to Alec's left, very effectively bringing Alec out of his dumbfounded staring. And the other man seems to almost shake himself, blinks, gives another glance at Alec, a slight smile, before his eyes unerringly move to the tire stack a little to Alec's left, giving the definite impression that this might not be the first time the child has hidden himself in that exact spot.

A slight grin quirks the man's lips as he finally saunters closer, eyes glittering.

“Now where could my Rafa possibly have gone?” the man is saying, voice warm and teasing and full of laughter.

Another giggle.

The man's smile widens.

And, yeah, Alec is mesmerized.

The man continues on his path - coming closer to where Alec is still rooted to the spot, still staring - finally winks at him when he is just one or two steps away and then suddenly speeds up, darts around the stack of tires with a grin, already reaching for the toddler hiding there and the ensuing tickle fight has the entire garage filling with joyful, screeching laughter.

Alec feels a smile stretch over his own face at the adorableness of the scene in front of him.

Finally, the man is getting up from his crouch, wearing a broad grin to match his glittering eyes, the red-cheeked, still giggling toddler now held securely on his hip.

And Alec promptly finds himself the focus of two pairs of curious eyes.

A pause.

“Oh, you must be one of the new drivers." The smile on the man’s face is warm and bright and, by god, Alec is utterly unable to so much as look away from him. "I don’t think we’ve been introduced. I’m Magnus.” He bounces the child on his hip a little, making him giggle. "And this is Rafael, the little troublemaker."

“Alec,” he offers in return, although entirely incapable of producing anything beyond that simple introduction right now.

Because between the gorgeous face, the neatly trimmed beard, the perfectly styled hair, the muscle shirt worn under the mechanic’s coverall tied around his waist, combined with the glittering eyes, the small streak of oil on his cheek and the warm smile on his face, this might honestly be just about the hottest human being Alec has ever seen.

And somehow, the adorable toddler smiling at him sunnily from the man's arms doesn't lessen that assessment in the least. Quite to the contrary.

He watches as the man's - _Magnus'_ \- own smile widens, something almost a little teasing in his eyes now at Alec's continued staring.

Which finally manages to bring Alec out of it. He glances away briefly, makes sure to suppress the blush that is suddenly threatening to spread over his cheeks, before looking back and quirking a slight smile, gives a slightly sheepish shrug.

Magnus' smile seems to turn just that little softer in reaction, eyes warming, before he finally looks away as well, looks over at his son, and then proceeds to slightly bounce the little boy on his hip again, once more making the boy reach out to hold onto his father's neck, giggling happily.

And Alec just goes right back to watching the two of them.

It's been less than ten minutes since this adorable duo appeared in front of him and they've barely managed introductions so far.

And Alec can tell he is already smitten.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So. Yet another Malec fic, this time about car racing. 'Cause why not? It's not like I already have far too many unfinished Malec fics or anything... XD And this will be shameless fluff with as little drama or angst as I can possibly manage.
> 
> For anyone who is interested, all direct references and stats and facts are based on Formula 1 but I did my best to leave everything nice and vague (and it should be just as applicable to other forms of car racing if that's more your thing), so as not to get lost in the truly stupid amount of technical jargon involved :D 
> 
> Would love to know what you think (*^^*)


	2. Get set

By the time Alec finally wanders into the gym - still feeling a little dazed, can't quite get the image of Magnus and his son out of his head, even after the adorable duo had been called away via phone call - Jace is already over at one of the benches, working out, clearly having gotten an early start as well.

At his entry, Jace looks up, mouth opening for a greeting. Only to promptly stop again, sits up slightly, eyebrows rising at whatever expression Alec must currently be wearing on his face. "What ever happened to you, man? You look like someone whacked you over the head with a bat or a brick or something."

Alec focuses on him. Blinks. "I think I just met the hottest human being to ever walk the earth."

Jace blinks right back at him, "Alright?"

"And he works here. He is a mechanic. I think? And his son is adorable. They both are."

Jace tilts his head, definite amusement on his face now, "He has a son? You sure he isn't straight then? Or in a relationship already?"

"His interest was pretty clear," Alec shakes his head. There had been signals, right? He breathes out, "Seriously, I don't think I've ever seen anyone as attractive as him."

Jace snorts, rolls his eyes, and then goes right back to his workout. “If you say so. But in case you decide to propose any time soon, just remember that you promised me I’d be best man at your wedding years ago, no matter what Izzy might be claiming now.”

* * *

Ragnor is laughing at him where he is sitting on the other couch across from Magnus, entirely distracted from the contract in his hands.

Magnus isn't bothered by his friend's laughter, just shrugging in response, and reiterates, "I'm serious. I don't know how this happened but apparently my team hired a model as one of the new drivers. I mean I remember Luke sending me the files and seeing the picture and thinking he was kind of cute but, _by god_, did that picture not do him justice."

Ragnor snorts, even as he signs the contract in front of him - for that piece of real estate smack in the middle of Manhattan they decided to buy for their newest hotel - with a flourish before handing it over to him. "Just try not to screw him before the first race. At least wait until you know whether he's any good behind the wheel before you do."

"Hm," Magnus hums absently, briefly distracted by a noise from the baby monitor, the rustling of his son turning over in his sleep. Rafael is down for his midday nap, leaving Magnus and Ragnor to get a few things done in the meantime. "Like you are one to talk."

A pause.

"That was once!" Ragnor promptly sputters in protest. "Once!"

"So you keep saying," Magnus returns cheerfully, signing the contract as well and finally setting the stack of papers aside to give to Zachariah next time he sees him. "Just because you keep repeating it, doesn't mean I'm suddenly going to start believing you."

* * *

“I’m looking for one of the mechanics?” Alec asks, glad that his voice doesn’t give away just _how much_ he wants to find the man. “His name is Magnus.”

Alaric - one of the chassis engineers of the team - blinks at him. And then a slow smirk starts spreading over his face. “A mechanic named Magnus?”

Alec doesn’t know what the smirk is for, but he doesn’t much care either and before Alaric can say anything else, Maia suddenly appears beside him, rather obviously stepping on the other engineer's foot as she pushes him aside.

“Oh, yes, Magnus. You must mean the _head_ mechanic of the team then," she says, throwing Alaric - who is still grumbling - a significant glance.

Alec ignores it and instead just nods, shrugs, no idea as to Magnus’ actual position on the team.

“Magnus is usually only here in the mornings every couple of days," Maia says, slight amusement in her eyes. "He should be back early tomorrow."

Alec nods in thanks and turns right around again, no interest in chatting with either of them - much less in deciphering what the glances and frowns passing between these two are for - and instead deciding to read up on those stats for the next race that the systems analysts handed him earlier.

He’s never had the patience for idle chitchat.

* * *

In the end, Alec doesn't even have to seek out Magnus. Because the scene from a couple of days ago pretty much repeats itself, this time in the gym instead of in the garage itself.

Alec is going through his usual morning fitness regimen - as usual the first one here, being everything but a morning person and very much preferring to do his first round of training without company - when he hears the giggling of a toddler coming closer.

He blinks, sits up slightly as he sets down the weights, staring at the door, suddenly unsure what to do.

He quickly down at himself.

He came here right after getting up and he has been working out for almost an hour now, honestly not having been expecting company this morning. He is sweaty, wearing gym shorts and a sleeveless shirt. He didn't even shave yet.

When he had been trying to find Magnus, hoping to see him – someone who'd definitely made the impression of caring about his styling, what with the perfect hair and the perfect makeup and the perfectly trimmed beard – again, Alec definitely hadn't imagined he himself would look like this the next time they ran into each other.

But Alec also really doesn’t want to let the chance of talking to him at all pass him by after having unsuccessfully searched for the other man for the past couple of days.

So, what to do?

In the end, he doesn't get a choice in the matter, because the duo is already rounding the corner, tiny adorable toddler in front, gorgeous father following calmly behind.

The latter of whom comes to a brief stop once he spots Alec, blinks.

And then, a slow smirk tilts Magnus’ lips, eyes slowly dragging over Alec. From top to bottom, and back again.

He feels his neck heat a little, even as a smile tugs at his lips. Seems like he was worried for nothing. Going by the heat in Magnus’ eyes, Alec's current look is definitely met with approval.

"Alec," Magnus finally says in greeting, still wearing a slight grin. "Good morning."

"Hey, Magnus," Alec greets back, thankfully managing to sound entirely casual despite the surprise and his brief freakout over his current outfit.

He watches the other man step into the room after his son who has clearly spotted some of the more colorful gym equipment and is making a beeline for the colorful balls off to the side, screeching in joy as soon as he reaches his goal, "Ball! Ball!"

“That’s right, sweetie," Magnus smiles from where he comes to a stop just a few steps away from Rafael. "Which color do you want to play with? You can pick one to play with after breakfast.”

The child immediately falls silent, face scrunching in concentration, head tilting, brow furrowed in thought as he contemplates his choices. The focus on his little face almost makes Alec want to coo.

He automatically meanders closer to the two of them, only really noticing he started crossing the room once he is already halfway there and then deciding he might as well continue all the way.

“He’s adorable,” Alec can’t help but say when he finally comes to a stop beside Magnus. Because the little boy truly is just about the most adorable thing ever.

And going by the rather sappily approving grin Magnus promptly directs at him at that comment, Alec isn’t the only one to think so. Then Magnus blinks, like he just remembered something, “Oh, congratulations on the race!”

“Thanks,” Alec smiles, immediate exhilaration shooting through him at the reminder, still a little giddy with the success himself.

Magnus looks entirely cheerful, almost smug when he says, “I don’t think anyone here expected you to be quite that successful in your debut race. Getting second place in your very first race. That’s pretty amazing.”

Alec’s smile widens. He can't help it.

Even he and Jace hadn’t expected to make it to second and third place in their very first race in the big leagues. It still seems a little surreal.

But before he can say anything in reply, a little shadow suddenly smacks into the side of Magnus’ leg, “Papa, blue!” Rafael is grinning up at his father, enthusiastically presenting a bright yellow ball to them.

And Magnus' smile when he looks down at his son is so warm and loving, just seeing it almost makes Alec’s heart skip a beat.

“Yellow, sweetie. The ball is yellow.”

Rafael nods importantly. “Blue.”

Magnus sighs with a grin, turning to Alec as though to explain. “We are working on the colors right now. He got all of them down but for some reason yellow seems to pose a problem.”

Alec feels his own smile widen as he looks down at the little boy. “Well, it’s entirely understandable. Yellow is _definitely_ the most difficult color of them all.”

Rafael grins up at him sunnily, both hands holding on to the ball that is about half his size.

_So adorable._

Alec smiles back at the toddler before looking up again. Only to find Magnus watching him with a smile of his own.

There is a brief pause, then Magnus says almost-but-not-quite nonchalantly, “We were just about to head to the break room for Rafa’s breakfast." A pause. "Would you like to join us?”

Alec would. He would like to very much.

So, he nods, excuses himself for the quickest shower he’s ever taken in his life.

And then, he spends far more time of his morning watching a toddler make a mess of his meal and far less time working out than he honestly should. Which just means he'll have to make up for it later today.

But despite the rather grueling workout he has ahead of him to make up for missed time, Alec can’t say he regrets it. At all.

* * *

Alec doesn't really know how, but somehow the three of them having breakfast together in the break room before most of the team even makes it to the garage kind of just becomes a thing.

At first, Alec isn't sure whether it's just because he is always one of the first people here and seemingly so is Magnus on the days he does come in at all.

But by now, Alec knows better than to show up at the garage without at least taking the time to shave before he leaves his place. And so what if he starts coming to the garage even earlier than before, just so he can be done with his fitness regimen by the time Magnus generally tends to appear.

By the fourth time Magnus sticks his head into the gym - Rafael held on his hip this time - when Alec is just about done with his workout, clearly having specifically stopped by the gym to ask whether Alec would like to join them for breakfast, he is fairly certain that it's not convenience or coincidence at all that has Magnus seek him out.

So, Alec smiles and nods in agreement - liking that neither of them is bothering with any pretense, both of them rather obvious about how much they enjoy each other's company - happy to join the adorable duo in the break room. It quickly becomes a - if not _the_ \- hightlight of his day.

Alec is well-aware that he is so far beyond smitten with these two, it's not even funny anymore.

So, he spends a couple of mornings every week cheerfully watching Magnus feed his son - every time amazed at how much food can fit into such a tiny person - and enjoys the conversation whenever Rafael is distracted by his meal.

They talk about racing and cars but also other hobbies and family, about favorite books and about dream vacations.

And this morning - like every time they've done this so far - breakfast passes too quickly.

Rafael is absolutely adorable and well-mannered right up until the point he is told meal time is over. Well, at first he is delighted because 'end of the meal' means he gets a cracker to gnaw on, slowly but surely turning it into absolute mush while Magnus cleans up the mess his son has made. It’s clearly Rafa’s favorite part of the meal.

But once that cracker is gone, the pouting promptly starts. And Alec has never seen anyone pout quite as impressively as the toddler does.

"Papa, more," Rafa says plaintively, almost a question but not quite, reaching out a hand towards his father as though hopeful that _this_ time he'll actually get another cracker. But Magnus seems entirely unmoved as always, clearly more than used to the pout his son is currently directing at him.

Who clearly also realizes as much.

And then, for the first time since Alec started joining them for breakfast, the toddler apparently feels familiar enough with him as well to promptly turn his pout on Alec instead.

"More, 'Ssanda."

It sounds even more plaintive now and Alec practically feels his heart melt at the sight of the wobbly lip and teary eyes, not to even mention how adorable he finds Rafael's abbreviation of the name Alexander. He stares back, feeling a little helpless when faced with that expression.

_Another cracker couldn't do any harm, right?_

Alec opens his mouth.

But Magnus interjects before he can actually say anything. "Don't fall for it," he says, smile in his voice as he continues cleaning his still pouting son. "His godfather taught him how to pout and Rafa knows _exactly_ how to use it."

Alec closes his mouth, pauses, and then nods, conceding the point.

But as soon as Magnus' back is turned, he still sneaks Rafael another cracker.

That pout is lethal in its adorableness and Alec would challenge anyone to try not to fold in the face of it.

* * *

Magnus laughs at something Maia just said from the other side of the car they are working on.

Not one of the racing cars, just one of the classic cars he owns and that Magnus and the other mechanics here so enjoy fiddling with.

So what if he uses his professional racing garage to also play with his other cars. The mechanics here love him for it, even having come up with a system to decide who gets to work on his cars with him whenever he brings in another one.

Right now he is leaning over the engine of his dark blue 1971 Porsche 911F, a car he absolutely adores. Maia is beside him, also leaning over the engine, Alaric is stretched out beneath the car grumbling about something or other - most likely in reply to her last sarcastic comment - and Gretel is sitting lotus-style on the stack of tires off to the right, grinning in amusement.

There is a noise behind him.

Magnus glances almost absently over his shoulder.

Only to see Alec standing in the door, eyes immediately flying up to meet his when Magnus straightens with a smile.

"Magnus," Alec sounds a little surprised - probably at seeing him here - and definitely a little flustered.

"Alec," Magnus smiles in reply, tries to keep the smugness out of his voice.

So what if he is more than a little delighted at the fact that Alec had definitely been checking out his ass while Magnus had been leaning over the car.

Who _wouldn't_ be smug at finding themselves checked out by one Alexander Lightwood?

* * *

For several days, Alec isn't able to get the image of Magnus bent over that beauty of a car out of his head.

Admittedly, he might have been less focused on the car itself and much more on the way the other man's ass had looked in his coveralls while leaning over the car's engine, but Alec doesn't think he can be blamed for that.

Magnus truly is ridiculously hot, with his perfectly styled hair and the makeup and the sleeveless shirt showing off his biceps. And the streaks of oil along his forearms when he stood up to smile at Alec, had only added to the overall hotness.

The entire image had kind of been like one of his fantasies come to life.

Alec is glad he managed to string a couple of casual-sounding sentences together at all, even if he regrettably hadn't actually been able to stick around to talk, seeing as he was scheduled for another test drive of his car to evaluate the adjustments that have been made since the last race.

Still, despite only having gotten a minute or two, that image of Magnus definitely stays with Alec. Actually, it still tends to make a rather frequent appearance in his dreams, even if it then tends to involve the presence of fewer people and definitely less clothes.

Alec still thinks he can't be blamed for any of it.

* * *

“He thinks you’re a mechanic?” Ragnor asks incredulously, laughter in his voice, barely two hours off his flight from his two-week business trip to Singapore. “A mechanic in your own team?”

“Well, yeah,” Magnus shrugs, raising an eyebrow. “It’s not like he doesn't have a reason to assume as much. I _do_ tend to wander around the garage in a mechanic’s overall so I don't ruin my clothes and he did find me fiddling with one of my cars with some of the other mechanics. And it’s not like I could correct him and introduce myself as the owner of the team and ‘oh by the way, you know those two billionaires everyone likes to gossip about but no one quite seems to know what they look like, oh yeah, one of them is me’.” Magnus throws his oldest friend a sardonic look.

“Point,” Ragnor concedes, although still looking far too amused.

Magnus ignores it, sighs, “Which however still leaves me with the conundrum of how to ask him out to dinner knowing full well that he has no clue who I am?”

Now Ragnor is frowning, honest confusion in his eyes. “But why is that a problem? It never used to bother you before. We've been doing that for years.”

Magnus rolls his eyes. Pauses at the truth of Ragnor’s statement. Then huffs.

“It’s just…” he trails off, uncertain how to explain why it feels wrong somehow to not tell Alec the truth. And something about his hesitation must get him Ragnor’s full attention, because suddenly there is something far more intent in his old friend’s and longtime business partner’s eyes.

Magnus tries again. “Alec is just…He’s just _different_, somehow,” he finally admits.

“Different.” It’s not quite a question and Ragnor has lost that humor he usually wears so well, expression suddenly serious, something attentive, searching in his eyes. Then, he finally leans back in his seat, eyebrows raised, blinking in surprise at whatever he finds on Magnus’ face. “Oh dear.”

Magnus quirks a helpless smile at his friend’s reaction.

‘Oh dear’, indeed.

* * *

Alec stands frozen as he watches Magnus laugh with the guy who is currently holding Rafael.

Rafael is giggling with the stranger, babbling at him, clearly telling him some sort of story and definitely familiar with him and Magnus is in the process of handing over the diaper bag he always seems to be carrying for his son.

“I swear, Ragnor," he is saying, laughter and joking threat in his voice. "If you feed him candy right before handing him back to me again, I am going to finally educate you on just how much of a nightmare it is to get him down for his nap afterwards. I’ll tie you to the damn bed and make you watch if I have to."

Alec almost flinches at that phrasing.

The stranger – slender, handsome, expensively dressed – just laughs, clearly unconcerned at the threat as he lightly tickles the boy in his arms. Rafael screeches in joy and Magnus smiles helplessly at his son’s laughter.

The three look familiar with each other, comfortable, close.

Almost like a family.

Alec swallows.

So.

Looks like Rafael might have a second parent after all.

+++

When he gets home, it takes Izzy barely a glance at his expression to know that something is going on.

“What happened,” she immediately asks.

Alec shakes his head, shrugs, not really up to talking about it.

He doesn’t know how he got attached to the adorable duo of Magnus and his son so damn quickly, how he can already feel so crushed at the revelation that Magnus isn’t a single father at all, how he ended up adoring the two of them after only having known them for barely a couple of weeks.

Alec had been so sure Magnus was interested in him, certain there had been signals. But apparently not. He must have misread the situation somehow.

“Seriously, Alec, what happened?” Izzy asks again, putting down the magazine in her hands, something honestly worried in her voice now. Even Jace is looking over now from where he is sitting on the other couch, glancing between Izzy and Alec, clearly trusting her instincts on something being wrong.

Alec knows he won’t be able to get out of this without at least giving them something.

He's told Izzy and Jace about Magnus, so they are both fully aware just how infatuated Alec is with the man. And despite having yet to even meet him - unsurprising, seeing as Magnus' presence at the garage is so irregular - his siblings seem utterly invested in seeing Alec's interest in the man go somewhere.

So, Alec shrugs. “Turns out, Magnus is definitely interested in guys,” he says. “Mostly the guy he is apparently in a relationship with.”

A pause.

“Oh," Izzy says, watching him with slightly widened eyes.

Alec sighs.

Seriously, he should just give up on the notion of dating. It seems to never end well for him. This just proves it.

* * *

Magnus is pretty sure that Alec is avoiding him.

He has absolutely no idea _why_, but - considering that Alec just pretended not to see him when Magnus waved at him from across the room - Alec seems to be purposely avoiding him.

Magnus had been fairly certain that Alec was showing rather clear interest in him last time they talked, certain there had been some rather blatant signals being sent from both of them.

_Did something happen in between then and now?_

But for the life of him, Magnus can’t figure out just what that could be.

After talking to Ragnor earlier this week, he had made up his mind to first see where this thing with Alexander might go before Magnus will come clean about the whole billionaire thing.

So, over the past couple of days, Magnus has been trying to ask Alec out for drinks but every time he tries the driver either misunderstood his invitation or 'just had to be somewhere else' right when Magnus was about to finish his question.

He watches with a slight frown as Alec talks to one of the engineers on the other side of the room, entirely ignoring Magnus' presence.

Thing is, Magnus is rather sure about there being something between them, still is. If only because Alec still seems entirely unable to keep his eyes off Magnus for any amount of time.

As if on cue, the driver looks up, glances over at him, catches his eyes, immediately looks away again.

Magnus huffs, honestly a little annoyed now.

This whole avoidance thing is just getting ridiculous, not to even mention how bewildered and honestly bereft Magnus has felt at the sudden change and that he absolutely hates to have to tell his son that 'Ssanda isn't joining them for breakfast every morning.

So. Magnus might not be in the business of chasing people who don’t want him but he also doesn't just give up without at least trying. He has never been a quitter and he is anything but a coward.

At the very least, he wants to know what happened for Alec to back off so suddenly.

So, he is going to get himself some answers, even if that means he has to corner the other man. And if Alec truly isn’t interested _then_ Magnus will back off.

+++

Alec knows he hasn’t been handling the entire situation as well as he maybe could have, simply having decided to avoid Magnus like the plague ever since realizing that he isn’t actually available, much less interested in Alec.

Magnus, however, keeps seeking him out.

At this point, Alec thinks he might have just entirely misunderstood everything about their encounters.

Maybe Magnus had really just wanted to be friends right from the start, had just enjoyed hanging out with him and never had any interest in him beyond that. Because he clearly does want to spend time with Alec but also does nothing to hide the existence of that other guy who keeps showing up to spend time with Rafael.

And Alec can deal with having misunderstood, can deal with just being a friend. But he honestly just needs a couple of days to get used to the idea.

So, he has taken to entirely avoiding Magnus, going so far as to leaving whenever the other man so much as enters the room and the few times he didn't manage to get away, even interrupting Magnus with some sort of excuse whenever the man tried to ask him to spend some time together again.

But he knew his luck would run out at some point.

Case in point, Magnus finally cornering him and just straight up asking Alec what is going on.

And Alec just sighs, never one to beat around the bush either. “Look, Magnus. I _know_. And it’s fine. Really, it is,” he says, trying to hide just how much the revelation that Magnus apparently wasn’t interested in him at all had hurt at the time.

“Know what?” Magnus asks, suddenly something weird in his voice.

“About your…” Alec isn’t sure what to call him. Boyfriend? Lover? Husband? “Partner,” he finally settles on. That's good. Nice and neutral.

“My partner.” Magnus now sounds honestly baffled as he frowns confusedly. “On the team?” he asks and it takes Alec a second to realize Magnus must be talking about some sort of partner for work, clearly misunderstanding.

But before he can interject to correct him, something suddenly seems to dawn on Magnus. His eyes fly up to meet Alec’s. “Wait, you mean ‘partner’ as in _lover_?”

Alec shrugs with a nod. “The guy who comes to pick up Rafael all the time?” he asks more than states because at this point Magnus’ clear confusion is starting to make Alec doubt his own interpretation of things.

A pause.

Then, Magnus’ eyes widen. “Wait. Are you talking about _Ragnor_?” He sounds absolutely incredulous.

Alec nods. Yeah, that’s what he heard Magnus call the guy. Although, going by Magnus’ reaction he is also getting the feeling that he might truly be missing something here.

“Ragnor isn’t- Me and Ragnor aren’t-“ Magnus seems honestly flabbergasted. “Alec. I’m not dating Ragnor. By god, no.” A pause as a rather disturbed shiver seems to run through Magnus at the thought. “Ragnor is a _friend_. My oldest friend and also Rafa’s godfather. We’re not together. Never have been. He watches Rafa in the mornings sometimes so I can get some work done.”

Alec blinks, trying to absorb the new information.

“Oh,” he says rather dumbly in response.

Magnus is still staring at him rather incredulously, like the entire situation makes absolutely no sense to him.

And, yeah, Alec can definitely feel the embarrassment settling in now. Not only because he misunderstood but also because his reaction to Magnus being supposedly in a relationship very clearly gave away just how interested, how invested Alec already is.

But this also means that Magnus hasn’t been seeking him out in the past few days due to some sort of misguided wish for simple friendship, to hang out over drinks. Magnus has been trying to ask him out for drinks and it looks like it had been for all the reasons Alec had been wishing for.

And Alec – insecure moron that he is – just kept running away instead of using his words.

Maybe he should make up for that.

So, he takes a slightly bracing breath, takes a step closer, Magnus’ eyes immediately focusing on him.

“I’m sorry for misunderstanding,” Alec says honestly. Suddenly not at all worried anymore that Magnus might deny him when he asks, “If you have time, could I take you out for drinks or maybe dinner some time? As an apology maybe?” And, okay, it’s definitely not his smoothest request for a date but, hey, he’s working on the spot here.

Magnus blinks at the suddenness of the question, before a slow smile starts overtaking his face.

“I’d love to go to dinner,” he returns. Then his smile turns slightly impish. “Though I’d prefer it to be less of an apology and more of a date.”

Alec can feel himself smile as well. “So would I.”

* * *

Of course, things don’t quite work out as planned. But when do they ever.

Well, Alec gets ready for their date that Saturday and leaves on time to pick up Magnus from his place. He is admittedly a little nervous, not only because this will be their first actual date but also because it will be the first time without Rafael keeping them busy, the little boy staying with his godfather tonight. 

Magnus' building is really rather impressive, with an actual security guard and everything, but Alec is waved through as soon as he tells the doorman who he is and who he is here to see, apparently having been cleared by Magnus beforehand.

Although, when he finally gets to the topmost floor and rings the doorbell, there is no answer.

Alec waits for almost a minute before he starts debating whether he should ring again. And finally, after another couple of minutes, he rings the doorbell again.

It still takes quite a while, but finally the door opens.

Magnus appears in the doorway, sees him standing there, and blinks at him, looking frazzled and exhausted and honestly surprised to see him.

And then a sudden epiphany seems to strike the other man. “Oh no, the date,” he gasps, eyes widening a little.

So. Seems like Magnus forgot.

And Alec would usually be absolutely pissed at someone forgetting a date with him, but Magnus looks so utterly worn out and honestly frazzled right now, like he hasn't slept at all since they saw each other last. So, instead Alec just raises an eyebrow, waiting for an explanation.

Which he gets pretty much immediately, when Magnus promptly starts to ramble, “Oh god, I’m so sorry. Rafael has a fever and I’ve been up with him all last night and Ragnor was called away on a business trip in L.A. so he couldn’t help… And I’m so sorry I completely forgot to call you.” He looks embarrassed and apologetic and honestly upset with himself.

But Alec has already forgiven him. Honestly, Rafael getting sick is just about the best excuse he could possibly have for forgetting about having other arrangements.

“It’s fine, don’t worry about it,” he immediately assures. “I completely understand.”

Magnus huffs, still looking apologetic and really rather annoyed with himself. “I could at least have remembered to call you and let you know before you came all the way here.”

Alec just shrugs. “Really, don’t worry about it.”

Which is the exact moment he can hear Raphael start crying in the background. And Magnus immediately twitches backwards in the direction of the sound, clearly wanting to go but not knowing what to do about Alec standing in his doorway.

He glances at Alec and then behind himself and it’s so obvious he is so over-tired, barely managing to stay awake at all, that his brain isn’t capable of providing him with an answer to his current conundrum.

So, Alec does it for him. “Can I come in?” he asks, trying to suppress a smile, rather taken with this frazzled version of Magnus, who is usually so in control and suave and smooth.

“I-“ Magnus blinks at him. “Yes. Sure. If you want? Make yourself at home. I just need to…” He waves his hand at the rooms behind him and then he is already hurrying away towards where Rafael is crying, only throwing him another apologetic glance.

Alec steps inside and closes the door behind himself as he watches him hurry away, can’t help but notice the mismatched fuzzy socks on the other man’s feet, not to even mention the mess that is Magnus' hair right now.

Alec doesn’t think he has ever been so endeared with anyone before in his life.

And that's how he comes to spend what was supposed to be a romantic evening in an excellent restaurant - with good food, muted lighting and music in the background - sitting on the couch in Magnus’ apartment instead, eating Chinese takeout and talking quietly, a finally sleeping Raphael tucked against Magnus’ chest, the man himself looking tired and so soft and not at all like his usually so perfectly styled self.

In other words, he looks absolutely lovely and it’s definitely the best damn first date Alec has ever been on. Probably his best date, period.

And when Magnus softly kisses him goodbye at the door later that night - nothing heated, just a soft, gentle, lingering press of lips against his, warmth curling through Alec at the touch - he thinks he'd be honestly alright if this were to turn out to have been the _last_ first date he'll ever have to go on at all.

Because, why mess with perfection?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So much sappy fluffiness! Although, sorry for that brief bout of angst in between, it happened entirely without my say-so XD
> 
> Next chapter will be some actual racing, some more character interactions and also smut (which is going to be at least mature if not explicit, just fair warning and all that :3).
> 
> Also, I'm trying a somewhat different writing style from what I usually do with shorter scenes and far less introspection, and I'd absolutely love some feedback on that! And as always, scenes keep sneaking into my writing, so I had to add another chapter but I promise there won't be more than four parts to this :D
> 
> Thank you so much for your comments and kudos! You guys are just lovely (*^^*)


	3. Go

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **Warning:** There will be smut. You have been warned :D

_“Do you see that, Al? There’s barely a couple of centimeters between their cars, despite them going at top speed!”_

_“It’s truly incredible! I’ve never seen slipstreaming like this before, Tony! It looks like it’s just one car, instead of two!”_

Magnus smiles as he listens to the commentators gush about Alexander and Jace’s driving.

He is up in a private spectator’s box, surrounded by tinted glass, letting him enjoy the race in private while Rafael sleeps in the next room, sound-isolated from the rest of the box.

And usually, Magnus would absolutely join the rest of the team down in the pit to watch the race. But he and Ragnor have a conference call in a couple of minutes with Cat regarding some problems with one of their charities which sadly does take precedence, so he hadn’t really had a choice but going with the billionaire version of enjoying the race today.

At least Magnus managed to make it to the track at all this time and didn’t have to stay behind in New York while the team traveled to the site of the next race. So, at least he’ll be able to join the celebrations later.

And it definitely looks like they’ll have reason to celebrate.

_“It’s incredibly difficult to slipstream in sharp curves like on this course. And when I say ‘incredibly difficult’ I mean, ‘supposedly impossible’.”_

_“You mean ‘supposedly impossible’ until now.”_

_“Apparently,” _the commentator chuckles._ “The precision needed for this is incredible. It’s like they can read each other’s mind.”_

Magnus’ smile widens.

“Well, don’t you look like the proverbial cat that got the cream,” Ragnor comments, holding out one of the drinks he just got from the installed bar area.

Magnus takes it gratefully as his friend sits back down next to him.

Of course, Ragnor barely makes it for a minute of watching the race before he is already scoffing. “I still don’t get your fascination with this. Cars driving in circles. Seriously, how is this even a sport?” he grumbles.

“Like your regattas are any better,” Magnus sighs in exasperation. “Ragnor, we have this conversation every single time you watch a race with me. It’s the cars and the speed and the continued chase, the absolute precision that is required because in the end it might just be a fraction of a fraction of a second that ultimately determines the winner. It’s pure adrenaline. Honestly, how can you _not_ love it?”

Ragnor just huffs, grumbling, “My regattas are way better than this.”

Magnus rolls his eyes, deciding to simply not deign to reply – which is also how this argument ends every single time they have it – and instead focuses back on the race.

There seems to be something about this track that just really works for Alexander and Jace, having them synch up even more than usual – which is definitely saying something – and by now their lap times are completely removed from the rest of the field. If they keep going like this, they’ll not only take first and second spot but they’ll also be ridiculously far ahead of the other drivers.

And the commentators are still gushing.

_“DW Motors really knew what they were doing when they switched drivers, even if it was at the last minute. This is not the sort of talent any team would pass up.”_

_“Especially considering that it’s the first season for both Lightwood and Wayland. If this winning streak of theirs continues, not only is DW Motors guaranteed the team win this season but they might also get both their drivers onto the final podium.” _

_“You think we can expect them to take first and second place this race again?” _

_“Well, going by their current time, they might just manage to set a new overall record for this track, so, yes, I’d say their chances of winning this race are pretty good.”_

Magnus smirks. When DW Motors first announced switching drivers right before the season start, the entire circuit had been abuzz with rumors and speculation and everyone had been convinced they were making a mistake.

Oh, how everyone has changed their tune now.

This is their fifth race and Alec and Jace really seem to match incredibly well with Magnus’ cars. They have yet to drop below the fourth place, making for quite the incredible debut season, not to even mention that the two of them always come in with consecutive placing, usually with less than a second time gap in between.

Magnus is also getting the definite impression there is some sort of deal between the two brothers. It seems that they are purposely switching off who comes in first between them, seeing as their placing so far has reliably alternated every race.

Of course, Magnus is well-aware just how lucky he got with Alec and Jace, having been forced into switching drivers on such short notice initially. But still, he thinks he has every right to gloat about just how good his two drivers turned out to be.

Not to even mention that later today, after the interviews and the celebrations and the afterparty, when all of that is over, Magnus gets to take one of those miracle drivers out for dinner.

Their first date – if you can call it that due to the presence of a feverish toddler and Magnus barely being able to keep his eyes open by the end of it – was a couple of weeks ago and they’ve been going on dates ever since.

Although, it’s currently the busiest time of the season and the rather crammed schedule of almost weekly races keeps dragging Alexander to various places all over the world, leaving little time for anything else. Combine that with Magnus’ own rather ridiculous schedule of meetings and business trips and they don’t get to see each other nearly as often as either of them would like.

And they’ve yet to actually make this thing between them official, something Magnus is hoping they’ll finally get around to talking about later tonight when it’s just the two of them during dinner.

Because despite their ridiculously busy schedule, both of them have been doing their best to make the time, and Magnus is at that point where he really wants to make clear just how invested he is in this, wants to put a label on it.

He quite simply wants to be able to call Alexander his boyfriend.

* * *

They are kissing, or rather making out.

Alec is still high on adrenaline from the race, high on victory, and they only have about half an hour until he has to be downstairs for the press conference but Alec just couldn’t help but want to at least get his congratulatory kiss from Magnus before he has to deal with the media.

Magnus is sitting back against the table, Alec standing between his legs as they kiss, pressed close, hands curling into clothes, lips moving, tongues sliding together.

It's hot and languid, and Alec isn’t aware of anything beside Magnus, warm hands gently stroking over his sides, his tongue in his mouth, the heat of it, that slick little curl to Magnus’ tongue as he slides their tongues together almost making his knees feel a little weak.

Alec leans forward a little more, can’t help but press closer, hand coming up to curl around the back of Magnus’ neck, thumb curving underneath his jaw, tilting his head to give him a better angle, licking the sound Magnus makes right out of his mouth.

One of Magnus’ hands slides up his back, over his shoulders, burying itself in Alec’s hair, the kiss so deep and slow and sensual, his mind is honestly fuzzy with it.

He tangles one of his hands in Magnus’ shirt, pulls. Just a little closer.

Magnus just tilts his head up a little more, withdraws the slightest bit to softly nip at his lip before once more licking into his mouth, somehow deepening the kiss even further, sliding their tongues together, almost soft, almost gently but at the same time _so, so hot_.

By god, Magnus can kiss.

* * *

_Hairpin turn to the right. Hundred meters straight. Left-hand curve, immediate slight right. Shift up. Long straight ahead._

Alec’s brain is going on automatic.

The road is flying past him, another curve, another straight, another hairpin.

He doesn’t need to check to know that he’s nearing the 300km/h mark right now, doesn’t need to check that Jace is right behind him in his slipstream, the two of them as always moving perfectly in synch, neither of them needing to even think about it.

_Slight left. Twohundred meters straight. Shift down. Hairpin to the right. _

His car reacts without delay, his every move instantly translated into the movement of the car itself.

Right now nothing else matters, nothing beside the road, steering wheel in his hand, the vibration of the car around him.

Alec only knows that they are currently on lap forty-eight out of sixty laps in total because of Gretel’s voice in his ear keeping count.

The starting line flies past. Another lap.

_Sharp right-hand curve, slight curve to the left. Shift up._

Adrenaline pumps through him, sharpens his focus. Shifting gears, the pedal beneath his foot, the road flying past.

Alec loves this, loves racing, loves it more than almost anything else in the world.

* * *

"Kitty! 'Ssanda, look! Kitty!" Rafa screeches joyfully from his high perch up on Alexander's shoulders as they near the lion enclosure.

The people around them throw the excited child fond glances, women swooning at the image of Alexander - all tall and dark and handsome - with the adorable toddler on his shoulders. Alexander has a secure hold of Rafa's shins to make sure he doesn't fall despite his excited bouncing, unbothered by the little hands firmly gripping his hair.

Magnus just wanders calmly behind, a grin on his face, not even bothering to hide his smug satisfaction at the fact that both of them are _his_. His son and his boyfriend. The adoring masses will just have to deal with the disappointment.

They are at the zoo, a trip he had been planning with his son for a while now. And when he told Alexander about it, his - at that point rather newly minted - boyfriend had paused for a moment and then carefully asked whether he could come along.

Which might coincidentally have been exactly what Magnus had been hoping to achieve by telling Alexander about the trip in the first place.

So, now they are here and Magnus hasn't been able to wipe the grin off his face ever since they arrived and Rafael promptly demanded to be picked up by Alexander, little arms stretched out towards him, having realized a while back that as long as he is sitting on Alexander’s shoulders no one will be taller than him. His son absolutely adores it.

Well, Rafa adores anything that involves his ‘Ssanda.

His son has gotten so used to his presence during breakfast that whenever Alexander doesn't join them in the morning - either because Magnus can't fit an early-morning visit to the garage into his schedule or because Alexander and the team have already traveled to the site of the next race - Rafael tends to pout endlessly.

Alexander who is now humming in agreement to Rafael's squealing. "That's right. A lion is a very big kitty."

"Lion!"

"That’s right. A lion. And what does the lion say?"

Rafa immediately lets go of Alexander's hair to curl his hands into little fists a few times, imitating a cat’s claws as he scrunches his face into his fiercest - utterly adorable – scowl, "Rar, rar!"

The image of his son trying to imitate a lion's roar is so adorable that Magnus just about melts on the spot.

The fact that Rafael then immediately loses the scowl to eagerly look down at Alexander for approval and Alexander has tilted back his head to be able to look at the toddler on his shoulders, a broad, warm grin on his face, only makes Magnus' smile widen to truly ridiculous proportions.

Because while Rafael might adore Alexander, Magnus himself certainly isn’t any better. He is so gone for this man, it's honestly a little ridiculous.

Alexander just fits so perfectly into their lives, like there had been some sort of Alexander-shaped space in their lives that Magnus hadn't even been aware of before.

They are so happy right now and Magnus absolutely adores what they have.

There is just one little problem.

He still hasn't told Alexander the full truth about who he is.

Sure, it's not like Magnus is really lying about anything truly important, has been entirely truthful about everything except for the fact that working at the garage isn’t his actual job, that Magnus is fact filthy rich, and that his name is famous worldwide.

And he might not be lying about anything aside from his actual job, but Magnus is also very purposely, consciously keeping some things from Alexander. Like the fact that Magnus actually owns DW Motors, that he is effectively Alexander’s boss.

And keeping this to himself might have been fine before they officially started dating – might even have been necessary – but now it's just not anymore. Alexander is his boyfriend and he deserves the truth.

Magnus needs to tell him. He knows he does.

Not tonight, though. Because Magnus is leaving for a business trip to Germany tomorrow and telling Alexander the truth right before skipping town for a couple of days really doesn’t seem like the best idea.

But still, next chance he gets, Magnus _needs_ to tell him.

And he will.

Soon.

* * *

They are on the couch in Magnus’ loft, kissing.

Their trip to the zoo was a full success and Rafael had barely made it through dinner before conking out.

So now, it’s just the two of them.

Magnus is on his back, Alec lying mostly on top of him, one of his legs slotted between Magnus’ as they kiss. They are both still fully clothed but the kiss is still so hot and sensual and Alec might honestly be losing his mind a little.

They’ve been officially a couple for about two weeks now – well, ‘officially’ to their friends and family, the press still not having caught on to the fact that Alec is gay much less in a relationship, doesn’t even seem to be aware of Magnus’ existence at all – but with how busy they both currently are, they’ve spent more time talking on the phone than actually _with_ each other ever since they got together.

Point is, this sort of lazily making out is definitely not something they usually get to indulge in. And they certainly haven’t yet managed to take things further.

Instead, they’ve been dancing around that heat between them for weeks now, a heat that is entirely undeniable whenever they do get a couple of minutes to themselves, things between them always, easily turning so hot it’s honestly a little ridiculous.

Like right now.

The kiss is deep and intense, Magnus’ hand running down from his shoulder over his back, before slipping back up, under his shirt, softly running over the skin beneath, heat spreading from wherever he touches. His other hand is buried in Alec’s hair, tilting his head slightly, their tongues sliding slickly together, and Alec is so hot, almost sweaty from how good it is.

Almost too good.

Magnus presses his knuckles against the small of his back and somehow that rather innocent touch still has heat flooding through Alec, shooting down to his groin, feels himself getting hard.

They are only making out and already Alec can barely think straight. If this is what kissing Magnus does to him, then he can only imagine what the actual sex will be like. Alec might quite honestly not survive.

Although, the fact that Magnus so very clearly knows what he is doing is also a source of uncertainty for him. Because Alec himself is anything but experienced in the bedroom.

Don't get him wrong, he isn't a virgin in any sense of the word but he can count the number of times he has actually had sex on his fingers and still have a few left over. Not to even mention that none of those 'encounters' were particularly spectacular.

So, he knows they need to talk before they actually have sex, if only because he feels like he owes Magnus a sort of warning. About his issues and not to expect too much from him.

And clearly Magnus notices his hesitance somehow. Because he finally pulls out of the kiss, leans their foreheads together, breathing a little heavy but voice steady as he asks quietly, “You alright?”

Alec tries to blink himself back into focus, brain still a little fuzzy. “I am. Really, I am. It’s just…”

Magnus watches him attentively for a couple of seconds before smiling slightly, tenderly. "Alexander, there is absolutely no pressure. I’m more than happy to just make out and cuddle on the couch if you want." It’s said humorously but Alec can see in his eyes just how serious Magnus is about this.

And, sure, Alec is grateful for the reassurance. But _not_ wanting to have sex with Magnus is about as far as one can get from the truth. Quite the opposite. The anticipation of the wait is kind of killing him.

So, the sooner they talk the better and he’s always been the straightforward sort. "It's not that I don't want to. Not at all. It's just... It's been a while for me," he finally admits. That’s at least part of the story and as good a place to start as any.

There is a brief pause.

"Oh, darling," Magnus smiles warmly, humorously, a little self-deprecatingly. "I think I might possibly have you beat on that front. I’m a single parent with absolutely no time on my hands. I haven't dated much less had sex ever since Rafael came into my life."

Alec blinks, somehow not having expected that at all.

"No need to look so surprised," Magnus laughs lightly.

"Not surprised. Just..." Alec tries to find the right words but finally just comes out with, "You are just so hot, it simply didn't occur to me."

Magnus' smile widens. "Thank you, darling, for that lovely compliment. But the same could be said about you. Gorgeous, confident, professional athlete. Aren't you supposed to have a literal line of women leading to and from your bedroom door?"

"Well," Alec grumbles. "The 'woman' part of that sentence makes that rather unlikely."

"Like that would be a problem," Magnus chuckles. "Like men wouldn't line up for you if they knew they had a chance."

Alec quirks a half-grin at that, shrugs slightly. "Sure.” Takes a breath. _No point in chickening out now_. “But I just don't do casual sex, it’s just not my thing. Even casual dating doesn't really work for me unless I'm honestly interested in someone and want to see where it might go."

When he glances back at Magnus, there is something so warm, almost adoring in his eyes that it makes Alec flush a little. Magnus’ affectionate, tender smile widens, suddenly something coy and seductive curling at its edges as he smiles at Alec.

_So damn alluring._

Aleccontinues quickly before he loses his nerve. Or gets distracted. “And I’ve only really dated someone seriously once. Well, at least serious on my end. And it lasted all of two weeks.”

There is a brief pause.

And then, sudden understanding floods Magnus’ face, clearly getting what he is trying to say, what Alec not liking casual sex but also not having had a real long-term relationship means.

Alec is glad for the understanding. He might not have a problem with his how little experience he has but he’d still much rather not have to say it out loud.

He watches a small, tender smile appear on Magnus’ face, watches as the gentle understanding turns into warm adoration. But it’s the almost hungry gleam in Magnus’ eyes, that almost predatory glint as he watches Alec, that sends a heated shiver of arousal running down Alec’s spine.

* * *

_"It was yet another double-win for DW Motors. Wayland coming in first, Lightwood second. This is the sixth time this season alone they have taken the two top spots."_

_"Who would have thought they would turn out as actual contenders for the title when they just started." _

_"No one would have expected this. No one even knew their _names_ before this season."_

Jace’s smug grin in ludicrously broad as he looks over at Alec from where he is sitting on the other couch in their apartment.

It's Sibling Saturday - a term coined by Izzy several years back when they had first started getting busy with their own lives and kept missing each other - which means it's just the three of them, spending time together.

It's already afternoon, they just had lunch and are currently lazing around on the couches in their apartment, some sports show running in the background, the three of them only starting to pay attention once their names came up.

_"Well, people certainly know about them now. And DW Motors is likely going to have quite the fight on their hands from other teams trying to get a piece of them."_

Izzy snorts in amused derision and Alec can’t help but agree. It’s not the first time they’ve heard this, pretty much every interview they give – on or off the race track – seems to include some sort of question about their future despite the current season barely being half done at this point.

Of course, Jace and Alec have been keeping their answers nice and vague always saying something along the lines of being truly happy with their team and wanting to see how the season turns out before they think about the future. But, honestly, if given a choice there is simply no way they will agree to switch teams, not if DW Motors wants them to stay on next season.

It's an excellent team, the cars are amongst the best, the teamwork is cohesive, they are literally living their childhood dream of the three of them working together, and with how much money they are currently making, even if some team were to offer them double or triple the salary, it wouldn't be enough to even tempt them.

They _like_ their team.

They like the people and the way everyone treats each other and how everything is organized. They like that the owner of the team apparently cares enough about his employees to pay for health insurance and family leave and sick leave, pays for the entire team to travel back home between races instead of just making everyone travel from racetrack to racetrack as most of the other teams do.

The three of them have talked to other drivers and based on their stories most of them barely get to see their families during the season at all unless they fly them out to wherever the next race takes place.

Point is, everyone at DW Motors seems to truly like working there just as much as Alec and his siblings love it, and there is just no way they'll switch teams if they don't have to.

Not to even mention the fact that all three of them are currently involved with someone from the team. Alec is dating Magnus, Izzy is once-again-and-forever-more with Meliorn and Jace has something going on with Maia as much as he may claim it to be entirely casual.

So, yeah, they like where they are at right now and have absolutely no interest in going anywhere else.

* * *

The door slams closed behind them, but Alec is far too focused on keeping his lips attached to Magnus' to worry about something as trivial as disturbing the neighbors right now.

They were just on a date, Magnus having been gone for almost a week on a business trip to Europe. And Alec missed him - and Rafael and their breakfasts and dinners and any time spent together really - with a ferocity that honestly surprised even himself.

And they had breakfast together this morning which was wonderful as always but right now Rafael is with Ragnor, and Alec just spent the entire evening staring at Magnus, wondering rather helplessly how anyone could possibly look so incredibly attractive all the damn time.

And Alec is so absolutely ready to finally take this further, has barely been able to think about anything else recently.

He flips them around, pushes Magnus against the wall in the entrance hall of the loft, their lips still attached, hands roaming, fingers curling into fabric or sliding along the skin beneath.

Magnus does that flick thing with his tongue that makes Alec a little weak in the knees every time but right now just sends red-hot arousal down to his groin. He moans, not really hearing anything above the blood rushing in his ears, but feeling it vibrate through his chest.

He pulls back slightly, slightly nipping at Magnus' lower lip as he rolls his hips into the other man's. This time his moan is echoed.

"Bedroom?" Alec breathes against Magnus' lips, immediately leaning in for another kiss.

He gets neither a real answer nor the kiss he was going for, seeing as Magnus is too busy sucking a bruise into the skin of Alec’s neck to actually respond verbally beyond giving a sort of affirmative hum in response.

Okay. Bedroom it is.

Although, Alec can't really be bothered to detach himself from Magnus in any way right now, not even enough to navigate their way through Magnus' loft.

Instead, he just reaches down, letes his hands slide over the other man's truly fantastic ass and finally grasping the underside of his thighs to simply lift him, and steps away from the wall.

Magnus makes this punched out noise that goes straight to Alec's groin. "Goodness, Alexander." Magnus sounds a little incredulous even as he wraps his legs around Alec's hips.

"Oh, you like?" Alec doesn't even attempt to tone down his smugness as he starts moving them towards the bedroom.

"Oh, do I ever. How could I _not_?"

Magnus doesn't give him a chance to reply, already leaning down the sudden slight height difference between them and kisses him with an intensity that would have Alec's eyes crossing, if he didn't have them closed already.

All thought leaves Alec, when Magnus sucks on his tongue.

Thankfully, they have already made it to the bedroom, so Alec can just let them crash down onto the bed, even manages to catch himself over Magnus, both forearms planted into the mattress on either side of his head, making the tumble seem like a conscious decision and less like his knees just giving out on him.

"Well, that was graceful," Magnus grins up at him, definite humor in his eyes.

"Professional athlete," Alec returns like an almost explanation, too focused on getting Magnus' lips back on his, already leaning down for another kiss.

Magnus just laughs quietly against his lips. And Alec absolutely adores the lightheartedness. It just takes some of the pressure off somehow.

And then, somehow, from one moment to the next, everything just turns slower, turns less frantic, the kiss deepening, entirely unhurried. He feels Magnus' hands reaching up to work on the buttons of his shirt, but his fingers are unhurried, almost matching the pace of their kiss, slow but only seeming to grow deeper with every passing second.

He doesn't know how long they kiss, and by now Alec isn't quite sure whether he remembers what breathing without Magnus’ breath on his face even feels like.

Then, his buttons are clearly undone as he feels Magnus' hands run across his naked skin from navel to chest, running across his shoulders and taking the shirt with it as he strokes his hands along Alec's arms.

And then Alec is shirtless, with a decidedly less naked Magnus underneath him. Which urgently needs rectifying.

He flips them around, making it a little easier to pull Magnus' shirt up and over his head, immediately spreads one hand over Magnus' now naked back, pulling him down, closer, fully on top of Alec, skin on skin.

One of Magnus’ legs slots between his and for a while Alec completely loses track of anything that isn’t the man on top of him.

They simply get lost in kissing each other, Magnus' hand buried in his hair, Alec's hands continuously roaming across the naked skin spread out above him, moving together slowly but not yet really taking it further.

It’s good. Almost too good.

They haven't even gotten to any of the really good parts yet, haven't even managed to entirely get out of their clothes. And already Alec feels like his brain is melting. Just from this.

By god, the effect Magnus has on him is so far beyond anything Alec has ever felt before.

It takes them a while to actually divest themselves of all of their clothes but finally, Magnus is kneeling over him, naked, skin flushed, so utterly breathtakingly beautiful. Alec swallows.

Then, Magnus grinds down and Alec entirely loses his breath. Hands are running over his chest, leaving tingling heat in their wake and Alec feels like he might be going slightly mad from this, too much and not enough at the same time.

“Babe,” he breathes, arching up from the bed, further into Magnus' hands. “Come on.”

The teasing smirk curling Magnus’ lips does nothing at all to alleviate his arousal.

He almost wants to sigh in relief when he sees Magnus lean over to reach for lube and condoms, watches him slick up his fingers.

Somehow he is still surprised when Magnus doesn’t actually reach down to prepare Alec but instead reaches behind himself.

Not that Alec is going to protest the idea of getting to be inside Magnus. _At all_.

But when he reaches out – to help, to touch, to do _something_ – Magnus just pulls away slightly, shakes his head, eyes heavy-lidded as he says, “Just watch.”

It takes Alec a second, but then desire pulses through him when he gets what Magnus means.

He watches, endlessly aroused, as Magnus prepares himself, prepares himself for Alec. Bats his hand away when Alec tries reaching out again.

And he can do nothing but let his hands curl helplessly around his boyfriend’s thighs because he needs _something_ to hold on to if he isn’t allowed to actually touch.

Alec is sure he has never been so turned on before in his life.

Magnus feels Alexander’s hands tightening their grip, fingers digging in the muscle of his thighs, as he tries to keep himself from touching, eyes dark and blown-out, absolutely fixated on Magnus opening himself up for him.

He is entirely unable to rip his eyes away from Alexander’s slightly dazed expression. Alexander who is always so focused, always so intent, and it turns Magnus on fiercely that he can mess with that, fuzz it up a little.

And there is something about the way Alexander touches him, something not quite certain, that shows he truly isn't quite as used to this sort of thing as someone might expect from someone with his looks and obvious confidence. And he knows Alexander pretty much spelled this out for him, told him about his own limited experience in the bedroom.

But still. Something about this, about how there is just something tentative in how Alexander reaches for him, touches him, hands running over naked skin, eyes blown-out by desire but something careful in them as well... It definitely does things to Magnus.

Boy, does it ever.

Although, by the time Magnus is done preparing himself - admittedly, giving a bit of a show while he does so -, Alexander is watching him with a sort of hunger that has red-hot desire swimming in his veins.

He reaches for a condom, slicks him up, lets a coy smile curl his lips as he holds Alexander’s gaze.

By the time Magnus is finally lowering himself onto him, Alec feels like he might be going mad with desire, an ache low in his stomach from how much he wants it.

And it takes whatever restraint he still has left to make himself hold still, Magnus tight and hot around him and Alec can't help but want to just drive himself up into that wonderful heat.

Instead he reaches up, hand curving around Magnus' jaw, pulls him down for a kiss.

It’s slow and deep, the warm metal of one of Magnus’ necklaces pooling in the hollow of Alec’s throat, the kiss almost languid if it weren’t for the heat of arousal zinging through him every time Magnus moves, pulling up a slightly only to sink down a little further.

By the time he bottoms out, Alec feels like he is about to lose his mind.

And finally, Magnus starts to move. Slow at first, almost too slow, excruciatingly slow, before he starts speeding up, does something with his hips that has red-hot arousal shooting through Alec.

_Yeah, I just might die from this._

Everything about this is just so intense and gentle and tender and Alec is so desperate to come but also kind of wants to just stay right here forever, connected to Magnus, slowly driving into him, so close to him it’s hard to tell where one of them ends and where the other one begins.

He pushes up, meeting Magnus’ every movement. Still he needs more. More contact, more heat, more everything.

He curls an arm around Magnus’ back, sits up to be able to kiss him better, it changes the angle slightly as he slides in even further.

“You feel so good,” Alec says into his mouth helplessly. Magnus just moans in reply.

Magnus moans, moves to sink his teeth into the skin of Alec’s shoulder, the sting of it making a shiver run through him.

Alec feels the pressure build, knows he is close and he just _can’t_ anymore, needs more.

Magnus lands on his back.

It takes him a second or two to catch up with the fact that Alec just flipped them around, so easily, without effort, the ease of the move having pure desire curling through Magnus.

Alexander starts to move. And the change in angle almost too much stimulation to take, absolutely perfect.

Magnus lets his eyes slip close, reaches up, Alexander’s shoulders beautifully broad underneath his fingers, lets his hands run over the skin spread out above him.

Alexander is driving into him just right. Deep and fast and so good. _Achingly_ good. Has his toes curling in the sheets as he arches up into his thrusts.

“So good,” he moans.

But he wants more, always more. “Faster, Alec,” he demands.

Alec shudders at how wrecked Magnus sounds, heated desire, pure want shooting through him.

Magnus looks incredible spread out beneath him, all flushed skin and heated eyes, as he reaches up to pull Alec down into a kiss so filthy it has him groan helplessly into his mouth. He can’t do anything but do as he is told, hooks an arm below Magnus’ knee, driving into him faster, harder, deeper, knees sliding up the bed with the force of his thrusts.

Something tells Alec that Magnus is close, his breathing erratic, quiet constant moans spilling from his mouth, the expression on his face every time his prostate is grazed absolutely maddening, and has Alec focus everything he has on hitting that spot as often as he can.

Then, Magnus moans, clenches around him, raking his nails down Alec’s back as he comes.

Alec watches with heat clouding his eyes, the sting of his nails telling him Magnus might actually be drawing blood, but Alec doesn’t care, can’t care, not when the sting finally pushes him over the edge and he’s coming, coming inside of Magnus, literal spots dancing in front of his eyes before he closes them, finally more or less collapsing on top of Magnus, barely managing to at least catch some of his weight on his forearm planted on the mattress.

It takes them a couple of moments, before Magnus just languidly wraps an arm around him, his other hand coming up to card gently through Alec’s sweaty hair, stroking slowly.

Alec just nuzzles closer.

It’s too hot in here, their skin far too warm for this. But Alec honestly wants nothing more than to stay right here, right where he is.

If he had a choice, he might just try staying right here forever.

* * *

Magnus lies awake, watching Alexander sleep next to him, stretched warmly along Magnus' side, curled around him like Magnus is some sort of overgrown teddy bear for him to hold on to.

It's adorable.

And he can’t remember the last time he felt this comfortable while wrapped around another person. Can’t remember whether he _ever_ felt this comfortable with another person at all.

He softly runs a hand down Alexander’s naked back, marvels at the beautiful display, eyes dragging over the marks he left on that beautiful body earlier, smug possessiveness pulsing through him, drags a finger over one of the bruises. 

Not that his body looks any better. He thinks he’ll be carrying the bruises Alexander’s fingers left on his thighs for at least a couple of days.

His smile widens. He quite likes the thought.

And, damn, even Magnus hadn’t expected the sex with Alexander to be _that_ good, obvious chemistry between them or not.

They honestly exhausted themselves to a point where they barely managed a quick shower before falling right back into bed and Alexander had been out like a light within moments.

Magnus, however, can’t sleep despite being so utterly exhausted.

His smile slowly fades as he stares at the dark ceiling.

He still hasn’t told Alexander the truth.

Magnus has been telling himself to just get it over with and tell Alexander everything, tell him that he isn’t actually just a mechanic on the team, that he is actually literally rich and famous, tell him about owning the team they both supposedly work for. He even had every intention to tell Alexander everything tonight.

But once more, he chickened out.

Because Magnus is scared. Scared that telling Alexander is going to change things, possibly even ruin things entirely.

Scared that he might lose Alexander entirely for having kept it a secret for so long already. Possibly even more scared of the thought that Alexander might decide to stick around but that this beautiful thing they have between them will change, turn into something full of reproach and leverage and passive aggressive fights, destroying each other slowly instead of an immediate break.

But he also knew from the very start that the longer he waits, the worse the fallout is going to be. He _knew_.

And now. Now, it’s too late.

Because Alexander is in his bed and Magnus still hasn’t told him.

And his heart squeezes in pain at the thought of how betrayed Alexander is going to feel once Magnus does tell him.

Sure, to Magnus his wealth and fame has very little to do with who he actually is. And he thinks that Alexander – being rich and famous himself – will likely even understand that part, will know that fame and fortune has nothing at all to do with who you actually are, that it doesn’t define you as a person if you don’t let it.

But the thing that will hurt Alexander will be the fact that Magnus lied to him at all.

Aside from his status as a billionaire, Magnus has been absolutely, entirely honest with Alexander in everything else, has opened himself up in a way he doesn’t think he’s ever done for anyone else before. Hasn’t lied or skewed the truth in any way. Has been entirely himself around Alexander, no masks, no pretense, freely let him into his and Rafael’s life.

And Magnus can only hope that will be enough for Alexander once he does find out.

He swallows, breathes out, presses a lingering kiss to Alexander’s temple, wraps his arms a little tighter around him, closes his eyes.

Magnus can only hope.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, like I promised, pretty much just racing and smut :3 Would love to know what you think :D
> 
> And in my opinion the smut isn’t really explicit yet since I kept the descriptions pretty vague, but let me know if you think this goes beyond mature and I’ll change the rating of the fic. Next chapter will inevitably have a bit of angst due to the whole billionaire-in-disguise issue but I promise there will be a perfectly fluffy ending to this :D
> 
> And thank you so much for your wonderful comments and kudos! You are just wonderful (*^^*)


	4. Finish line

Alec can't help but smile rather dotingly from where he is watching Rafael evenly distribute what appears to be his entire collection of toys across the floor of the break room.

The little boy is cheerfully babbling at Alec, apparently explaining why the red toy truck goes right in the middle of the carpet, while the blue building blocks belong under the sofa and the stuffed giraffe has to be together with her friend the penguin on top of the chair.

Alec just smiles and nods, makes assenting noises whenever there is a pause in Rafa's admittedly rather nonsensical chatter clearly waiting for Alec's approval, and then hands him the next toy to add to the mess, admittedly only part of his attention on the stats one of the engineers handed him earlier that he is supposed to be reading.

He is babysitting Rafael until Magnus gets done with the apparently rather urgent conference call that suddenly called him away to his upstairs office at the garage.

It’s been happening a lot these past two weeks, urgent calls and unexpected meetings and sudden business trips calling Magnus away and taking up most of his time.

Alec might not know exactly what's going on, but just going by the stress and irritation on Magnus’ face whenever he sees his boyfriend after those meetings, there really seems to be something going on, some sort of crisis to be solved.

And don't get him wrong, Alec absolutely loves that with Magnus being so busy he gets to spend some time with just Rafael, the little boy he so adores and is adored by in return.

But.

It's just that recently, he has _noticed_ some things, things beyond just how busy Magnus seems to be on a regular basis.

Like the fact that Magnus doesn’t actually seem to spend all that much time at the garage, despite being one of the chief engineers. Or the fact that despite his rather infrequent presence at work, Magnus still always seems stupidly busy, always seems to have a conference call to take or a meeting in the city to get to or various business trips dragging him all around the country or even to different parts of the world.

The sheer number of things apparently on Magnus’ plate just seems a little strange for a mechanic, no matter how high up he may be in the team hierarchy.

And it’s admittedly been nagging at Alec a little.

So, usually he would simply come right out with it and ask Magnus about it.

But it's just... Things between them are good, _so_ good, perfect even, and Alec is a little afraid he might possibly screw something up by sticking his nose into things that aren't necessarily any of his business.

Because despite Magnus having been rather ridiculously busy pretty much ever since they took the next step and Alec himself being dragged to the various race tracks all over the world, they still do their best to make time for each other and whenever they do, whenever they do get an hour or two to spend together, things between them are pretty damn wonderful.

They just fit. Alec and Magnus and Rafael. The three of them simply fit perfectly together. 

This past week, Alec has taken to simply staying at the loft whenever Magnus is in town, to make the most of what little time they have to spend together.

And he loves it. Loves getting to wake up next to Magnus, loves the admittedly sometimes rather stressful mornings of trying to get Rafael to actually put on his shoes, loves their breakfasts together, loves their dinners even more.

He absolutely adores those few hours of the day where it's just them. Like a little bubble for the three of them in Magnus' loft, mealtimes and early mornings, playing with Rafael, putting the little boy to bed, soft conversation on the sofa once Rafael is asleep.

And the sex. Don't forget the sex.

Because sex with Magnus is quite simply mindblowing.

It's been two weeks since they took the next step, and every time they have sex things somehow only seem to be getting better, bordering on the honestly incredible at this point.

His boyfriend is always willing to try pretty much anything in the bedroom, absolutely unashamed of his own preferences and thereby giving Alec the confidence to be honest about anything he likes, doesn't like or would rather desperately like to try.

And it didn’t take Alec long at all to realize that Magnus pretty much always tops. Not necessarily in the traditional sense - because Magnus is nothing if not versatile in the bedroom - but even when Alec is deep inside of him, Magnus very much tops from the bottom.

And Alec is good with that. More than.

It actually seems to be a bit of a thing for him.

Well, anything that involves Magnus in various states of undress seems to be very much ‘a thing’ for him.

So yeah, like he said, sex with Magnus is incredible.

And then afterwards, falling asleep together, wrapped around each other, only to be woken the next morning by the sound of Rafael babbling at his stuffed animals over the babymonitor, and starting everything all over again.

At this point, Alec doesn't only have enough clothes and toiletries at Magnus' place to last him several days but he also has a side of the bed that he has been calling 'his' in the privacy of his own mind for a while now. And despite only having been together for a couple of weeks at this point, they already have a definite routine in their day-to-day, mostly due to Rafael. It's perfect and domestic and so so easy.

Like he said, they fit.

But.

The more time they spend together the more Alec notices things about Magnus' life that don't quite seem to make sense. Like the aforementioned fact that Magnus always seems to be busy but not necessarily with things that actually have anything to do with his job as a mechanic. Or the fact that Magnus despite being chief engineer doesn't even attend all the races, sometimes only appearing at the track for the race itself. Or the fact that Magnus seems to be really rather well off - just based on what Alec sees of his clothes, his apartment, or the gadgets he tends to carry around - for someone who doesn't really seem to spend all that much time at his job.

It's confusing.

And Alec still isn't sure whether he should bring all of it up, whether he should ask.

Because even in his own head, the list of things that is nagging at him kind of sounds like he might be accusing his boyfriend of something. Which Alec honestly isn't.

So, maybe he should just wait a little longer with his questions, at least until Magnus isn't being run ragged anymore by whatever is currently going on to keep him so busy in the first place, at least until Magnus has a little more room to breathe again.

Maybe then, Alec can finally ask just what it is he is clearly missing about his boyfriend’s life.

* * *

Magnus had sworn to himself that he would talk to Alexander as soon as he got back from his business trip to Europe, had planned to take his boyfriend to dinner and then just come out with the truth, had fully planned to tell him everything.

Because Magnus has quite simply run out of excuses for the continued secrecy, so far past the point of no return. And he knows he really needs to tell his boyfriend sooner rather than later if he wants to still be able to explain his secrecy as a precaution and not as actual mistrust of Alexander’s motifs.

But of course, things don't quite work out as planned.

While still in Germany he gets a call from Cat about some sort of irregularities with one of FB's charities. One rather intense investigation later and it turns out that one of the people involved in running that charity for them has apparently been refunneling quite a bit of the charity’s funds into their own private accounts instead.

Between trying to salvage that mess and all his usual obligations, Magnus barely has time to sleep, much less anything else.

And for a couple of days he is so busy during the day, utterly exhausted when he gets home and so very happy to get to relax with his son and his boyfriend in the evenings, that Magnus just kind of forgets about the secret still hanging over his head in good old Damocles fashion.

* * *

In the end, they never get around to that conversation. Because everything kind of falls apart before they have a chance to finally talk.

* * *

Magnus should have known that someone would pick up on his identity at some point, that the press would at the very least realize that 'Magnus Bane, the mechanic' might actually be a good candidate for 'Bane, the billionaire'. It's honestly a little strange that it took them this long.

Still, somehow, Magnus is utterly taken off guard when it happens, entirely unprepared when the press descends upon him like a swarm of vultures right in front of the restaurant they just had lunch at.

Things have finally calmed down a little, the situation with the charity resolved, the catastrophe with the hotel in Hong Kong averted, the lawsuit against the hospital in DC settled.

Alexander just got back from his last race in Indianapolis yesterday, they have two weeks until the next race, and with his own schedule finally cleared up a little, Magnus had promptly decided to take his boyfriend and his son out to lunch.

It has been a wonderfully relaxed day so far and Magnus can’t quite keep the smile off his face with how happy he is after spending two hours with his two favorite people in the world.

So of course, that’s when things fall apart.

Magnus is just stepping out onto the street, mostly focused on Rafael who is holding his hand, toddling down the three steps down to the street on his own, Alexander following just a little behind them, currently on his phone with his sister.

The sudden explosion of noise when they step outside almost makes Magnus flinch.

Suddenly, there is a crowd surrounding them, reporters yelling questions, cameras, lights flashing from every direction. His bodyguard – usually so very subtle in his guise as Magnus’ driver – pushing his way to the front, immediately at his side.

But Magnus only has eyes for his son.

Rafael who looks absolutely terrified by the sudden chaos around them, eyes wide and scared at the noise and all the strangers surrounding them, little face already scrunching up in terror and Magnus is immediately reaching down, swinging his son into his arms before the crowd of reporters can fully close in around them.

Rafael starts crying as soon as he is in his arms, buries his face in Magnus' neck, great heaving sobs that he can’t even hear over the noise the reporters are making.

Anger burns through him.

Someone is going to pay for this. Someone – or several someones – are going to watch their lives going up _in flames_ for this.

And Magnus can barely spare a thought to the missing presence at his side, that Alexander should be standing beside him but isn’t, that Alexander was just a couple of steps behind them, that Alexander is currently finding out in the worst way possible that Magnus hasn't been entirely truthful with him. By having a press mob shout it at him.

"Mr. Bane! Mr. Bane! Do you have a comment about the identity of your business partner Fell of FB Enterprises?”

“Mr. Bane! Is this boy yours? Is he the heir to the Bane fortune?”

"Mr. Bane! What do you say about the rumors that have-"

"Mr. Bane! Mr. Bane! Have you heard the-"

"Mr. Bane! Is it true that-"

Alec stands in the door to the restaurant, staring wide-eyed, phone still pressed to his ear, only distantly aware of Izzy's voice in his ear demanding to know what's going on.

He had only been a couple of steps behind Magnus but when he steps outside after his boyfriend he is greeted by pure and utter madness.

Reporters everywhere, yelling over each other, drowning each other out, lights flashing, cameras and microphones being thrust forward. And they are all yelling at Magnus.

Magnus. Alec's lovely mechanic. Who is _also_ apparently the eccentric billionaire Magnus Bane?

It sounds absolutely absurd and Alec would be tempted to simply laugh out loud at the mere idea.

But.

In a sudden moment of clarity, it also makes a rather disturbing amount of sense.

Suddenly, all those things Alec has observed about Magnus' life over the past few weeks - but that he couldn't quite fit into what he actually knew about Magnus - suddenly make sense.

Magnus who is now being crowded by reporters, his own posture defensive, entire body seemingly curling around the crying toddler in his arms as the lights flash around them.

The sight jolts Alec into action, protectiveness rearing its head. There is a mob surrounding Magnus and Rafael, pressing closer and closer, none of them giving the small child in their midst any thought at all.

He clenches his teeth, steps forward, pushes his way to Magnus' side, and as soon as he is close enough he promptly curls an arm around his boyfriend, adding his own body as protection from the mayhem surrounding them.

Magnus glances up for barely a second, eyes wide and searching and hopeful as he meets Alec's, before his focus once more diverts to his son in his arms. Rafael who has his face buried in Magnus' chest, little fists clenching in the fabric of his father's shirt, body shaking with sobs.

Alec’s eyes narrow in anger, tightens his hold around Magnus, and then starts firmly moving them towards the car, glare firmly fixed on his face.

All of this is definitely more than a little surprising, but Alec can think about that later, can ask his questions later.

For now, he is only concerned with getting the three of them safely past the mob and into the car.

+++

Magnus sighs out, exhausted, drained in a way that makes his very bones feel tired.

Rafael is finally asleep, tucked against his chest, little hand still curled into the fabric of his shirt, unwilling to let go of him for even a moment.

The only thing Magnus would like to do right now is sit down on the couch, lean into the warmth of Alexander's side, and sleep for about a day. He feels like he used up the last of his strength to reassure his son and the absolutely last thing he wants to do right now is actually have this discussion with his boyfriend, a discussion with the very real risk of Magnus losing Alexander in the process.

Still, he does owe it to Alexander.

Now, how to start this truly not-so-comfortable conversation?

Thankfully, he doesn’t actually have to come up with anything as Alexander - watching him intently from the armchair across from the couch Magnus is sitting on - does so in his stead.

"You're Bane of FB Enterprises," Alexander more states than asks. "This is not yet another instance of the press' guessing game. You actually _are_ the billionaire Bane." Alexander says it with such easy certainty that even Magnus is a little surprised. He would have expected Alexander to feel at least a little bit of doubt, mostly due to the press' aforementioned regular 'We found him!' articles spread over the net.

Well, nothing for it.

"I am," Magnus confirms carefully.

Alexander is watching him intently but there is something so clearly confused, so clearly hurt in his eyes that Magnus’ chest squeezes in pain at the thought that he himself put it there. "You're rich. And famous." A pause. "And you didn't tell me." Another pause. "Why?"

Magnus breathes out. Because even in his worst how-Alexander-might-find-out-the-truth scenarios, the press mob shouting it at him hadn't even been on the list.

_Of all times, why did the media finally get a clue _now_?_

"I'm sorry I didn't tell you before," Magnus says, honestly apologetic. “I never meant for you to find out this way.” No use in telling Alexander now how often Magnus had fully been intending to tell him everything but something or other coming up to prevent him from doing so. Excuses aren’t going to do him any good right now.

Alexander's frown deepens, but going by the rather intently focused look in his eyes, he is clearly still waiting for Magnus to answer his question of ‘why’.

So, he does, with a shrug and a tired sort of nonchalance, "I've been filthy rich since Ragnor and I made some excellent decisions when we were still in our early twenties. And we learned quickly that being rich always brings the wrong sort of attention. You get betrayed, get used, and at some point you just start assuming that everyone you meet has some sort of hidden agenda. It makes any sort of friendship or even honest acquaintance pretty much impossible." He sighs tiredly. "We learned that it's simply better to keep some things to ourselves or on a need-to-know-basis at most, all the better if there is some sort of NDA involved making sure there is an added incentive for people to keep their mouths _shut_."

Alexander is blinking at him. Probably surprised at Magnus' unusual candor.

But sometimes the memories of those years where Ragnor and Magnus hadn't yet wised up to the fact that money truly brings out the worst in people still sting. Memories of heartbreak and losing faith in humanity as a whole as the both of them learned that there truly is no way of knowing what another person's motivation might be.

Like Camille who they had both thought was a true friend. Until it turned out, she was anything but.

Magnus blinks his memories away, instead focuses on Alexander once more. "We've been hiding our identity for more than a decade now, and once Rafael came into the picture the need for secrecy only increased. We had already stopped making public appearances years before that, but from that point forward I started aggressively pursuing any media outlet who'd publish my picture, much less my son's. They are welcome to write about me, speculate about me, make things up out of thin air if they want to, but they learned not to even try to add actual, recognizable pictures to any articles they might publish."

Magnus feels a slight smile tilt his lips. "I mean, you've probably seen their strange where-is-waldo sort of guessing game where they regularly publish new bogus pictures of someone they supposedly identified as Bane." He shrugs slightly. "It’s a good deal for everyone. The press has clickbait, the public loves the intrigue, and the three of us are left alone.”

There is a slight pause, before Alexander asks, sounding a little skeptical, "No one knows?".

Magnus shrugs, "Well, the bigger news outlets know but they are more interested in getting us to comment on the economy or on our future projects than publishing our picture at some gala. And of course other people have figured it out over time without having to be told. Luke knows, for example. Maia and probably most of the other engineers know simply because I keep dragging various, rather expensive cars to the garage. And of course, PR knows. Well, some of them at least."

Magnus makes himself stop rambling before he starts making it seem like everyone _aside_ from Alexander knows. Because that isn't true in the least.

The number of people at the garage who know is unusually high, simply because everyone who has worked there for a while figures out that Magnus actually owns the place and it's really not that hard to extrapolate his identity from there, seeing as everyone knows DW Motors is owned by FB Enterprises. But the garage is also very much an exception.

They are silent for several moments.

“When would you have told me?” Alexander finally asks.

Magnus is rather happy to hear that there is no doubt in his voice about Magnus' intention to tell him at some point, that it was just a question of time.

So, best continue with honesty. “I honestly don’t know,” Magnus sighs. “In the beginning, I couldn’t tell you. Because I knew better. Because life has taught me better. Because of my identity and Rafael and because money skews everything. And then we started dating and I knew then I had to tell you and I’ve honestly been planning to ever since then, but… I just simply couldn’t bring myself to. Not when you were making us so happy and fitting so perfectly into our lives and there being no guarantee how you would deal with the revelation. I just couldn't risk losing you.” A pause. Then a sardonic, self-deprecating smile. “Despite knowing full-well that the longer I kept this from you, the more likely you were going to leave us once you finally found out.”

Alexander huffs, looking annoyed and exasperated and hesitant and so many other things that Magnus can't pick it all out. “I’m not going to _leave_ you,” he grumbles.

Magnus blinks, feels relief spreading through him at his boyfriend's general willingness to stick around despite Magnus' screw-up.

He can only hope that will still be the case even after Alexander has had some time to think about it.

+++

Alec stares up at the dark ceiling of his room.

It's three am and he simply cannot fall asleep, mind circling, nowhere near having worked through the events of today.

He is alone, back at his own apartment, in his own bed, needing some space, a moment to think.

What he said about not wanting to leave Magnus is the absolute truth but he still needs a few moments to think, doesn’t quite know yet what to make of all of this, how to handle this, whether this changes everything or possibly nothing at all.

All he knows is that leaving Magnus and Rafael is just about the last thing he wants to do, but he just needs a moment to think.

To figure out whether he _can_ stay.

When he got back to his place, both Izzy and Jace had been waiting for him, some online gossip rag article glowing on the tablet lying on the table between them, showing a perfect image of the scene in front of the restaurant earlier.

There had been a brief bout of silence.

Then, Izzy had asked rather incredulously, "Magnus is actually 'the eccentric billionaire Bane'?"

Alec had just sighed. "Apparently so."

Their subsequent needling what this meant and whether he had known and what he would do now, certainly hadn't helped him. Not in the least.

But now, it's the middle of the night, he is finally in bed, on his own, and he can finally hear himself think.

Magnus’ expression - the bare second Alec got to see of it before Magnus had wiped his face clean once more - when Alec had said he needed some space to think, to come to terms with this, to make _sense_ of it, had been heartbreaking and almost made Alec want to stay at his boyfriend’s place after all.

Because Magnus _is_ still his boyfriend. Of _that_, Alec is sure.

Even if he is also apparently rich and famous and had kind of forgotten to tell Alec about that little fact.

But what does Magnus being rich really change?

Alec already knew that Magnus was on the wealthier side just based on what he observed of his life. Sure, he had never suspected him to be cartoon-ducks-swimming-in-his-money sort of rich, but Magnus being well off _had_ been obvious. And they only met after Alec himself had already signed a several million dollar contract with the team, so money just hasn't ever been a topic between them at all.

Well, beyond fighting over who gets to pay every single time they go on a date.

So. Magnus is rich. And also apparently famous.

Weirdly enough, while Magnus might be far, far, _far_ richer than Alec and has been famous for much longer and despite Magnus' name actually being famous worldwide, it’s _Alec_ who is far more likely to be recognized on the streets because he never bothered to avoid the cameras ever since he started racing professionally. As much as he might recently have started wishing he had done just that.

So, the fame shouldn't really be an argument at all.

But then there is the secrecy, the fact that Magnus kept this from him, kept his real identity from him, lied to him.

Although. Did he? What did Magnus truly hide?

Alec is fairly certain that everything he got to see of Magnus was honest, entirely real, that the secret of his identity doesn’t actually extend to their relationship in any way.

Actually, come to think of it, the fact that Magnus also owns numerous companies and hotels around the world finally explains all those weird business trips and conferences calls at all hours of the day that had admittedly started to nag at Alec a little.

Same for the fact that Magnus actually isn't a mechanic on the team but rather just fiddles with the cars he apparently owns whenever he can, which also finally explains some of the odder dynamics at the garage that Alec - and even Jace - recently started noticing.

So, if Magnus' wealth doesn't really matter, if his fame is irrelevant, if his secrets don't touch upon their relationship... What exactly has him feeling so perturbed about this?

Maybe the thing that is bothering Alec the most is actually the fact that he apparently works for Magnus without having known about it.

The thought that he has been sleeping with his boss is more than a little off-putting to be entirely honest.

Then again, Magnus hadn't even been there when Alec had been hired, so at least being hired for his looks instead of his skills isn't something he has to despair over. And ever since then, his and Jace's success every race very much speaks for itself, so the possibility of Magnus only having kept him on to keep him close is entirely ludicrous as well. Alec and Jace have earned their spots, no preferential treatment required.

He frowns at the ceiling.

So, what else could be nagging him about this?

Magnus is rich. Alec already knew as much and doesn’t really care about money anyway.

Magnus is famous. Much like Alec himself is.

Magnus kept his identity from him. With good reason as much as Alec wish he hadn’t hidden it at all.

Magnus is his boss. But he seems to leave the running of the team to other people, only showing up to relax and tinker with cars as it turns out.

Honestly, at this point the thing that bugs Alec about this the most is the fact that the entire thing doesn't really bug him at all.

Shouldn't he be pissed about this?

It's just, being mad at Magnus for not having been entirely honest about the size of his bank accounts when they've known each other for less than six months - have been dating for less than three - at this point just seems weirdly nitpicky. Alec sure as hell hasn't told Magnus everything there is to know about him yet either.

And with all those things apparently not really bothering him, what does that leave? Alec honestly can’t think of anything beyond billionaire Bane’s admittedly less-than-stellar reputation.

But no matter what the media might have been saying about Bane the billionaire over the years, the man Alec met and has been working with and who he has been helplessly falling in love with these past couple of weeks is anything but eccentric or unreasonable or unapproachable.

The Magnus he knows greets every single one of his – apparent – employees by their first names and asks after their kids and ailing grandparents and pays for extra family leave. The Magnus he knows has a tight-knit circle of friends and loves getting his hands dirty while taking apart cars and sings off-key lullabies to his son every night.

The Magnus he knows is even less of a morning person than Alec himself is and enjoys a gourmet meal in a five star restaurant as much as eating the leftovers of his son’s baby mush on the couch while holding Rafael in his lap and tends to nod off against Alec’s shoulder if they stay up beyond eleven at night and hates sycophants with a passion but will give literally everyone the time of day. 

The man Alec knows is the loveliest, kindest, warmest, most soft-hearted person he has ever met, always willing to listen or lend a hand if he can.

He frowns.

Come to think of it, maybe it is actually a good thing that no one knows Magnus’ identity. Because Alec can only imagine just how easy it would be for people to take advantage of his boyfriend’s compassion for every living creature on earth if they had any idea just how wealthy Magnus actually is.

Alec's frown darkens.

He'll be damned if he lets the hyenas of the press or the gossip-mongering public get even the slightest piece of his boyfriend's too kind heart.

So.

If Magnus wants to present the front of an eccentric, unapproachable billionaire to the world for whatever reason, well, then Alec is all too happy to add himself as his stuck-up, racer boyfriend to that image.

Not like it'll be much of an act. Alec has never been much of a people person anyway.

So, there.

Another moment of pause, a couple more seconds of staring at his dark ceiling, before he is already swinging his legs out of bed again, reaching for a sweatshirt to pull over his sleep shirt, and then he is on his way out of his apartment.

He remembers to scribble a quick note for Jace and Izzy to leave on the kitchen counter, so they don’t wonder about his whereabouts tomorrow morning, shoves his feet into his shoes and then he’s out the door.

It takes him about fifteen minutes to Magnus’ place because the streets are pretty much deserted at this time of night.

And it only occurs to him once he is already standing in front of Magnus’ apartment, key in hand and about to unlock the door - after he already parked his car in Magnus’ private garage beneath the building, and after he used the security code for the private elevator to make his way up to the topmost floor – that Magnus Bane, the _billionaire_ Magnus Bane, had given Alec full access to his building and to his apartment already a couple of weeks ago.

He blinks down at the key in his hand, a small, irrepressible smile tugging at his lips.

If that doesn’t say trust, if that doesn’t say commitment, if that doesn’t tell him just how invested Magnus is in their relationship, Alec doesn’t know what would.

Sure, they'll have to talk and Alec needs to make sure that there aren't any more humongous, need-to-know secrets about Magnus' life he might still be unaware of. Like making sure that Magnus isn't actually royalty and about to inherit a throne in some far-off country somewhere or something. Which should sound ridiculous but after today Alec's view of 'ludicrous' might have shifted a little.

So, yes, Alec definitely has a couple of questions to ask. But he knows he will stick around anyway, so the questions can wait until tomorrow.

He enters the loft quietly - not wanting to wake either of the hopefully sleeping occupants-, briefly stops at Rafa's room, stands in the doorway to listen to the quiet, calm breathing from the crib on the other side of the room.

Then, he makes his way to the master, opens the door just-as-silently, pauses in the doorway at the sight that greets him.

Magnus is sleeping, rather restlessly it seems, face not entirely smoothed out, even in sleep looking not-quite-relaxed.

But that's not what gives him pause.

No the thing that has a helpless, somewhat smug, absolutely endeared smile spread over his face is the fact that - instead of his usual silk pajamas - Magnus appears to currently be wearing one of Alec’s t-shirts. Not only that but he is also sleeping on Alec’s side of the bed, face pressed into Alec's pillow.

Alec has been gone for all of eight hours and Magnus clearly already missed him.

And, really, how is he supposed to resist this man?

_I'm not_, Alec decides.

He moves closer, loses the sweatshirt and the shoes, adds his t-shirt to the pile before he carefully lifts the covers on Magnus' usual side of the bed, sliding in, fitting his body against his boyfriend's sleeping form from behind, curls an arm around him to pull him fully back against his chest.

And Magnus lets himself be moved, just snuffles in sleep, reflexively pressing a little closer, and once he settles again, a quiet, content sigh escapes him, face finally smoothing out in sleep.

He doesn’t even wake.

And Alec smiles a little helplessly, buries his nose into his boyfriend’s hair and closes his eyes.

Recent rather shocking revelations or not, he has no interest in being anywhere else.

* * *

The fallout of the entire mess is surprisingly minimal.

Well, at least for them.

But the same can definitely not be said for anyone else who had been involved.

Because Magnus is on a warpath.

Several gossip rags suddenly disappear from the media landscape, their funding mysteriously crumbling away, inundated with lawsuits from multiple directions, none of which have a traceable connection to FB Enterprises, much less Magnus himself.

Several reporters suddenly find it rather hard to find jobs anywhere else, because even the small fry tabloids can smell when one of the truly big fish is out hunting, and no one wants to get themselves associated with _that_.

Alec just watches his boyfriend work with vindictive satisfaction, thinking that every single one of them deserves everything that's coming to them just for making Rafael cry during that ambush, much less for continuing once they realized there was a small child involved.

Magnus tears everyone apart who was even remotely involved with the ambush in front of the restaurant. It's not even all that hard, because none of the bigger newspapers had even been involved in that mess, all of them knowing better than to break their unspoken agreement about pictures of Magnus or his son.

And with the perpetrators all so busy trying to escape the sinking ships, within a week or so, the media-rush around Magnus has died down and the press ridiculously enough just moves on, continues their guessing game of trying to identify the billionaires Fell and Bane of FB Enterprises, Magnus’ supposed identity reveal quickly forgotten between the many other previous claims of the press of having finally gotten a glimpse of the elusive billionaires.

Things just go back to normal.

The only real change is the fact that while the press seems to have forgotten about Magnus supposedly being a billionaire, they _don't_ forget about Alec's presence during the whole mess. And they finally cotton on to the fact that he is not only gay but also in a committed relationship.

And suddenly, Alec is one of the very few professional athletes who are actually out as anything non-heterosexual, which is apparently a far juicier story than figuring out the identity of a billionaire.

All in all, Alec is mildly irritated at suddenly finding himself the poster child of gay people everywhere because it suddenly has the reporters far too interested in talking about his sexuality, acting as though Alec being gay were just as much a revelation to him as it is to them.

Although, the press is rather disappointed to find out just how non-juicy Alec is as a story, seeing as the most salacious thing they can dig up about the gay racer is that he is, in fact, gay.

And when a snippy reporter asks him about his sexuality in a way that is clearly meant to provoke him, clearly trying to rile him into some sort of less-than-positive reaction, Alec just shrugs at her with a raised eyebrow and confirms that, yes, he is in fact gay. That, yes, he has been gay ever since he can remember, and that, yes, he is currently in a committed relationship with another man.

And, also, kudos to the media as a whole for finally catching on.

Next to him Jace just about dies laughing at Alec's deadpan reply and at the gobsmacked expression on the reporter's face.

Point is, Alec is now dating a billionaire whose name is famous all around the globe, can be found on buildings everywhere around the city and all over the country, but everyone not-in-the-know assumes that it’s Magnus who is hanging off Alec’s arm and not the other way around.

Izzy and Lydia seem to be getting an endless kick out of the entire situation.

Magnus just finds it amusing, glad the press is once more ignoring him, and cheerfully makes himself scarce whenever they are cornered.

Alec honestly doesn’t much care. He just scowls at the press, answers their questions with the one-word replies he has quickly become known for, and hurries after his boyfriend as soon as he can possibly get rid of the mob.

Then, one gossip rag gets the bright idea of publishing a picture of Alec while holding Rafael on his hip. And Alec immediately goes after them with everything he has. Or rather, with everything Magnus has.

Which turns out to be Zachariah.

Who appears within the hour with a friendly, amicable smile on his lips and an unholy light in his eyes that absolutely scares the shit out of Alec, even as the man calmly, pleasantly and rather ominously tells them not to worry about a thing. He'll handle it.

Which he does. Exceedingly well.

It's the first and the very last time anyone dares to put up a picture of Rafael in connection with Alec.

He quite honestly doesn’t even want to know what Zachariah did to discourage the entire press core from repeating this particular mistake. Not ever.

After that, things settle down just as much as they speed up.

Alec starts sleeping at Magnus’ place more often than not and at some point he kind of forgets to go home at all anymore, staying over at the loft every night, his things slowly but surely making their way from his place to the mysteriously cleared up space in Magnus’ walk-in closet and onto the suddenly free space on his shelves.

Rafa starts staying with Alec instead of Ragnor whenever Magnus is away on a business trip – at least whenever Alec can’t join him – and it doesn’t take long for Jace and Izzy to start calling themselves Rafael’s aunt and uncle, thankfully doing so while cooing at the boy and thus not seeing that the simple comment makes Alec blush for the first time in a long while.

The end of the season draws near.

Which is also around the time Jace and Maia start officially dating.

Well, the two of them have been screwing around pretty much ever since Alec and his siblings joined the team, but at some point Maia apparently decides she has enough of the ambivalence. There is an ultimatum, Jace frets over the decision for a couple of days, and then the two of them are officially a couple.

Izzy watches it all, calls both her brothers boring, and claims that she is the only one who truly knows how to enjoy herself.

Alec and Jace just roll their eyes, knowing full well that as much as Izzy and Meliorn like to pretend to be particularly complicated, they are just _not_.

Those two have been in a relationship much longer than either Jace or Alec have even known their significant others. And, sure, both Izzy and Meliorn go out separately, even flirt with others, but most nights they tend to meet up and just go home together, at most picking up a stranger to join them for a threesome.

Izzy and Meliorn have been effectively been dating for going on five years now, even if they _still_ haven’t made it official. So, if anyone is boring, it’s those two.

The season ends. Alec now has a world championship cup proudly displayed on one of the shelves at Magnus' place, in addition to the team cup for this season.

The dynamics in their group change a little when Izzy and Meliorn pick up Simon. And continue picking him up. Until even Alec starts noticing the new guy's continued presence, although only picking up on the fact that his sister isn't so much in a love triangle with two guys but in an actual menage-a-trois when Magnus casually mentions it during dinner one evening.

At least the added presence of Simon makes for a rather interesting dynamic to observe.

Simon, who is geeky as all hell, looks at Izzy like she is the sun, and turns into a blushing mess whenever Meliorn is around.

Simon who also brings along his friend Clary, whose immediate interest in Jace is absolutely obvious. Which is the exact point in time Maia brings out her claws.

Something which is just entirely unnecessary, as Alec could have told her.

Clary might actually be exactly Jace’s type - and she likely would have had Jace running after her within seconds if he were single - but despite his player ways whenever he isn't in a relationship, his brother is nothing if not loyal.

Alec could have told Maia that as long as Jace is with her he won’t even really look at another girl.

Which – as soon as she realizes that very fact for herself – has Maia smug as all hell, strutting around like the proverbial cat.

Alec admittedly misses most of the back and forth, honestly entirely uninterested in everyone’s personal drama. But apparently his boyfriend is quite the gossip, hence Alec still being kept fully informed.

Then Rafael turns two and promptly becomes an absolute terror with a propensity for finding every single sharp corner and every dangerous object in a room, taking about a year off Alec’s life every time he does so.

He is still utterly defenseless against the boy’s gummy smile and Ragnor tends to endlessly make fun of him every time Alec’s resolve crumbles and he instead sneaks Rafael another sweet against his father’s explicit wishes.

Although, Alec doesn’t think Ragnor has a leg to stand on, seeing as he has all the authoritative firmness of a wet paper tissue when it comes to his godson.

Alec turns twenty-six, there is a big party. It's supposed to be a surprise organized by his siblings, but Izzy and Jace are just about the worst secret keepers ever and in the lead-up to his birthday Magnus laughs himself silly every time Alec is on the phone with either one of his siblings, having a grand time pretending to already have made some sort of plans on his birthday just to stress them out.

And once the party is over, Magnus turns right around and takes him on an _actual_ surprise vacation in Bali.

They lounge on the beach and do nothing at all beyond exhausting themselves by running after Rafael on the beach and having stupid amounts of incredibly hot sex whenever their little boy is asleep. Alec doesn’t think he’ll ever be able to think of anything other than the image of a naked Magnus backlit by the sunset over the ocean whenever someone so much as mentions the beach from now on.

They return home with their tans renewed, just in time for the next season to start.

Unsurprisingly, Alec and Jace had their contracts renewed and since Alec got to win the last world championship title, it will be Jace's turn this time around. To them, it's not even a question of whether they'll take first and second place this season again, only a question of who gets the trophy between them. And just to prove their point, they spend the first five races of the season taking first and second place, absolutely dominating their opponents.

Then, barely a couple of weeks into the season, Alec finally gives up on the pretense and decides to officially move in with Magnus.

It’s also right around that time that Rafael apparently decides to skip right past ever trying to fully pronounce the name Alexander. And the first time Rafael calls him Dada - reaching for him from a smiling Magnus' arms - Alec’s heart just about explodes with happiness.

Life just continues on. The extraordinary becomes every-day. His dream becomes his life.

The first time Alec Lightwood honestly thinks about marriage in relation to Magnus Bane, he has just turned twenty-six, has recently reached the peak of his dream career, and is kissing his boyfriend good morning, while carefully leaning over the toddler held in the arms of the man who might just turn out to be the love of his life.

And when he leans back to gratefully accept the cup of freshly brewed coffee Magnus clearly prepared for him once he heard Alec moving around, there is a colorful print of raspberry jam and mango fruit mush on Alec’s sleep shirt where Rafael pressed his own face to join their good morning greeting.

He barely gives the stain a glance as he leans back against the kitchen counter, far too used to the mess Rafael creates during meal times, watching his boyfriend makes silly faces at his son while cleaning up the giggling child's hands with a wet flannel.

And as he watches Alec’s mind simply drifts towards an image of their future.

Their future how it _should_ be.

Warmth and laughter, too many things to fit into their schedules but somehow managing anyway, always leaning on each other and quibbling about stupid things, insanely hot sex, agreeing on anything that is truly important and arguing about everything that's not. It’s safety and an always always warm place to return to, to call home.

Magnus glances up at him with a warm smile, eyes bright and happy, and Alec’s heart swells with an all-encompassing warmth. Because - most importantly - his picture of the future has the three of them together. Alec and Magnus and little Rafael.

The vision is absolutely perfect, a smile curving his lips, the thought of _‘I want that’_ echoing through his mind.

It's the first time Alec honestly, truly lets himself think about marriage in relation to Magnus. But it’s certainly not the last by any stretch of the imagination.

If anything, the dream vision becomes something of the norm in the coming months.

Up until the day it finally becomes reality.

* * *

The End

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A perfectly fluffy ending as promised (*^^*)
> 
> Only the slightest bit of angst in this and I hope you like how everything resolved itself with Alec angsting a bit about the revelation but ultimately just shrugging and simply going along with it. Would love to know what you think :D
> 
> And thanks so much for all your lovely comments and kudos throughout the story! You guys are wonderful (*^^*)


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